Beyond the Pendulum
by bladeWriter3
Summary: Two years have passed since the Dimensional War, and an era of peace now reigns across the universe. But nothing lasts forever, and a new threat, from a new dimension hidden from the rest, threatens to upset the order of the worlds. Against new foes and in new Dimensions, Yuya, Yuzu and their friends must fight once again to protect the balance of the multiverse...
1. New Beginnings

**Welcome all to my second Arc V Story! Well third, because I did a parody one shot where Yuya and Yuto talked about shipping, but enough self-promotion you came here to read an Arc V Story.**

 **Now let's get on with the show.**

* * *

Yuya stood outside You Show, patiently waiting for Yuzu's arrival. He stared at the setting sun, the fading light shining its last rays until morning. Street lights began to turn on, casting their own lights onto the car filled streets. The warmth of the summer air beginning to cool as night fell, it felt like a regular day.

Of course, Yuya's life recently wasn't exactly 'normal'. First he discovers the existence of other dimensions, fights in a war that involved traveling to three new worlds, finding out he is the reincarnation of a Pro-Duelist turned demon named Zarc, watching as Zarc is revived in his body and seeing his friends and allies be defeated in a duel while he could only watch from within, and having briefly forgotten about all of this and Yuzu, his best friend and the person he had scoured all of the dimensions looking for, he had a very tough few weeks.

That was all just two months ago, but things have been changing for the best. The Xyz Dimension is well under repair and the citizens are learning to forgive Academia, the people of the Synchro Dimension are becoming a whole and equal society, and the child soldiers of Academia were learning how to act like normal kids and not Duel with life-or-death stakes.

Of course, Yuya couldn't forget the three new voices in his head. After the clash with Zarc, his counterparts from across the dimensions, Yuto, Yugo and Yuri, were reborn inside of his body, believed to have been a side effect of preventing Zarc's soul from being separated again. It was an interesting experience to say the least, he had already done this with Yuto for the longest time prior to Zarc's revival, but now he had to room with three other people. Speaking of which…

" _I'm keep telling you they're just running a little late! Rin would never do something like that!"_

" _And I keep telling you Yuugou, that they just said that to mess with Yuya! They're girls, you can't trust um."_

" _YUUGO JA NE, YUGO DA!"_

" _Okay cool it you two other wise I'm getting involved."_

Yup, same old same old. Yuri would say something that would get on Yugo's nerves, they would go back and forth at it a little before Yuto would tell them both to knock it off. Worst part is that they couldn't separate Yugo and Yuri, because again they are sharing a body.

" _Oh please like you could handle either one of us in a fight!"_ Yuri snapped, a trollish grin on his face.

" _What's that supposed to mean?"_ Yuto asked, puzzled by Yuri's retort.

" _All I'm saying is if you were really a good Duelist, you wouldn't have been the first to-ulgch."_ Yuri answered as he slid his finger under his throat.

" _Again, if you hadn't tricked Yugo and I into thinking the other was you, we would have avoided that."_

" _That reminds me, it's been weeks and you still haven't apologized for everything you did!"_ Yugo barked, pounding his fist into his palm. _"So start apologizing, you effeminate bastard!"_

Silence passed for what seemed like ages before Yuri answered. _"No, I don't think I will."_ He said, turning his head away from his angered 'roommates."

" _Why not?"_ Yuto snarled through gritted teeth.

" _Because before I earn you forgiveness, I need to forgive myself first."_ Yuri said, staring at the setting sun. _"I was the one who gave into Zarc first, if anyone is to forgive me, I need to pay for my crimes first."_

It wasn't entirely Yuri's fault though. Had Leo Akaba not prevented him and Serena from meeting, and not encouraged Yuri to act in a bloodthirsty manner, Yuri would have avoided Zarc's influence for the most part. But that was how it happened, and Yuri became another Zarc, which set the stage for his revival even further. Though he was now stuck in the body of another, presumably for the rest of his life, an unable to commit more atrocious acts, Yuri would still forever bare the marks of his previous crimes.

Yuya felt saddened by this. Unlike Yuto and Yugo, he did forgive Yuri, though it wasn't easy. Yuri had not only carded his own father right in front of him, but it was by the two of them dueling that Zarc was reborn. He had every right to hate Yuri, but he didn't, because he had seen how Yuri was beforehand.

He didn't tell anyone this, but sometimes at night, he would have dreams, visions of his counterparts' pasts prior to Zarc's revival. He had seen Yuto struggle to hold on to the dream of peace as he clashed with Academia in the Xyz Dimension, Yugo and Rin work on their D-Wheel to achieve their dream and earn a better life for themselves in the Synchro Dimension, and he had seen and felt how lonely Yuri was.

Sometimes Yuya wondered how it would have been had Yuri and Serena meet. Would they have been friends, rivals maybe? If the Professor had not gotten involved, maybe Yuri wouldn't have been so alone, and he would have had someone to help stray him from the path Zarc had wanted them to take.

"Yuri," he said, earning the attention of the others. "It's okay for you to want to repent, but you can't do it just by yourself. We all share this life, we are one. You don't have to do this alone, you have us."

Yuri gave a small smile, one that was hard to read. _"Easy for you to say, the only crimes you committed were under Zarc's influence. But mine, they were because I willing did them. And anything these yahoos did were out of self-defense."_

" _HEY!"_ An offended Yuto and Yugo exclaimed.

Yuya frowned, Yuri felt so guilty that he wouldn't listen to him. "But still-"

" _No Yuya."_ Yuri said, cutting off his other half (or fourth) to do so. _"This isn't something you can magically get rid of through smiling. These is something only I can do."_ With that Yuri disappeared, retreating back into their shared mind.

" _Angst much."_ Yugo whispered.

" _Do you really think you can make him forgive himself?"_ Yuto asked, doubting if Yuri could in fact forgive himself.

Yuya looked at his Xyz Counterpart with a determined look. "Yes," he answered determinedly. "I was able to make Zarc smile from within Reira, and I will make Yuri smile as well."

" _Yeah, but the difference is that Zarc did want to make people smile before he became corrupt. Carding people was the only thing Yuri had to live for, and now that he's seen what really was going on, he has nothing to live for."_

"Maybe, but I will change that. Yuri may have a closed heart now, but I can open it." Yuya replied, hand over his heart. If he could help Zarc find his way back to the light, then he can bring Yuri out of the darkness that surrounded him.

Yuto smiled softly, somewhat amused by his main counterpart's strong will. _"Alright, I support you."_

" _Me too."_ Yugo added, though if only to get Yuri to apologize.

"Thank you." Yuya said, before noticing a head of pink hair coming his way. "Oh, she's here, could you guys uh-"

" _Say no more." Yugo waved. "We understand."_ The two boys disappeared back into their mind just as Yuzu approached.

…...

A few moments earlier…..

Yuzu started running the second the light said go. Yuya had asked that she meet him in front of You Show at sunset, but things got a little off track. He father had asked for some assistance, and then there was a little issue regarding the voices in her head.

Like Yuya, she had three counterparts from across the dimensions: Serena, Rin and Ruri. They had an important role in Leo Akaba's plan during the war, to be merged back into one and revive his daughter Ray, the only one who could stop Zarc. During the final clash against Zarc, Ray was only partially revived, and had to duel Zarc through Reira, who had absorbed Zarc into himself after the duel.

Ray's spirit was not revived after the duel, and Leo Akaba worked day and night to see if she would come back. It was only when Zarc, through a now female baby Reira, smiled that Ray was revived as herself. Of course she wasn't exactly alone in her body now.

" _I told you stopping to watch that duel would take up time, Rin!"_ Serena shouted, furious at the girl's insistence on watching a replay of one of Jack Atlas' duels on T.V.

" _Yes because your insistence on shouting throughout the whole thing and making us rewind had nothing to do with it."_ The Synchro Girl sarcastically replied, much to Serena's annoyance.

" _Now, let's calm down."_ Ruri said as she stepped in. _"It's no one's fault, and if we are putting the blame on anyone, I fell the need to remind us that I was the one who keep insisting we help Mr. Hiragi with, well you know."_

"I'm never using the garbage disposal again." Yuzu said, feeling nauseated as she recalled the mess when the drain in her kitchen sink exploded and spewed old and mushed up food everywhere. "I was lucky enough to get the lasagna stench out of my hair."

" _See it's no one's fault. So shake hands and say you're sorry."_ Ruri said to Serena and Rin, who did so rather awkwardly.

" _This feels weird on your end to, right?"_ Rin asked.

" _Ugh, yeah."_ Serena replied, puzzled by how much of a nun Ruri could be at times.

This was how it was now for Yuzu, sharing a body with three other girls that she barely knew. Between Serena's aggressiveness, Rin's tough yet motherly nature, and the ever nice and polite Ruri (which Rin and Serena jokingly refer to as her 'Mary Sue' personality), it was never a dull moment. It wasn't so bad though, she had three new girl friends that she could always hang out with, and she now has a pseudo-brother in the form of Ruri's brother.

Yuzu kept running until she eventually reached the school, where Yuya appeared to be talking to his counterparts. "Sorry I'm late, long story that I don't wish to relive." She said as she approached.

"Its fine, it didn't really matter if you were late or not, just that you showed up," Yuya replied.

Yuzu tried to conceal the small blush on her cheeks, but it showed none the less, concealed by the fading light of the sun as it disappeared. "So what did you want to talk about?"

"Did you remember the day we first met all those years ago?" Yuya asked.

The answer was of course yes, she remembered it. The You Show Duel School had officially opened, and Yuya's father had done a little show for the children who attended. It was a heartwarming and sweet moment that Yuzu still remembered to this day.

"Yeah, and after that day we were basically joined at the hip. There wasn't a day that went by were the two of us weren't together." Yuzu answered.

"Yeah," Yuya replied, a saddened look creeping onto his face. "At least, until the Battle Royal and the Dimensional War," he said as he wiped his eyes. Taking a step forward, he grabbed Yuzu's hand, much to her surprise.

"Yuzu I can't tell you how worried I was when you disappeared. I felt so afraid that something might off happened to you and that it was my fault I wasn't there to protect you." Yuya said, looking into her eyes. Yuzu didn't really know what to do except blush a little more. "After what happened with Zarc and you didn't come back I felt so worried you'd wouldn't come back, but I wouldn't give up hope."

Yuya turned his head out towards the now city, where lights in houses and office buildings where turning on at a rapid pace. "I guess what I'm trying to say Yuzu, is thank you. I wouldn't be where I am today if it wasn't for you."

Yuya looked back at the girl's face to see that tears where now flowing from her eyes, and he felt guilty. "Yuzu? What's wrong? I didn't mean to say anything wrong, I just-"

He didn't get the chance to finish that sentence, because Yuzu grabbed him by the collar and brought his lips to hers. The tomato haired boy momentarily felt shocked, Yuzu, his best friend, is kissing him for crying out loud. The confusion vanished as Yuya melted into the kiss. He cupped her cheek with his hand and she wrapped her arms around him, a symphony of emotions and feelings flowing between them.

Neither one knew how long it lasted, or who broke first. But what they did know was that they were both incredibly in shock and awe at what just happened. "Sorry." Yuzu said as she pushed one of her pigtails back behind her head. "I just don't know what came over me."

"No, no, it's-it's fine," a flustered Yuya answered back. "You know," he said while blushing, "there's this movie coming out next week, and I wouldn't object to you accompanying me to it."

"Yuya, are you-are you asking me out on a date," A surprised Yuzu questioned.

"Well, if-if that's what you want it to be, then yes. It's a date," Yuya said as he locked his gaze with hers.

"Then yes, I'd love to go out on a date with you." Yuzu answered. The two teens smiled at each other as their hands unconsciously grabbed each other. A beautiful silence filled the air, beautiful because it didn't need words to describe the feelings that surrounded the two of them.

Love.

From within his mind, Yuya's counterparts reacted to the scenes as one might have expected.

" _You go lover boy."_ Yuto said as he clapped, overjoyed that Yuya _**finally**_ asked Yuzu out on a date.

" _About time. If I had to see one more pair of yearning looks and doey eyes, I was going to snap."_ Yuri remarked, also glad that Yuya finally made a move with Yuzu.

" _Hey, Yuya doesn't yearn."_

" _Maybe, but_ he _does."_ Yuri gestured to Yugo, who was off staring into space muttering somethings.

" _Oh he's so lucky. Rin, if you can hear me, just know I feel that way about you."_ The banana headed boy shouted, much to the annoyance of Yuri.

Meanwhile Yuzu's counterparts were cheering Yuzu on as well.

" _Whew! You go girl."_ Serene cheered, which was a little odd considering she probably knew the least about romance between the four girls.

" _Hey Rin."_ Ruri whispered to the Synchro Girl, _"Do you think, that maybe one day, we might get our own bodies back and have what Yuya and Yuzu have with Yuto and the others?"_

Rin didn't answer back right away. She personally felt like there was no way that the fusion between the counterparts could be undone, but she didn't want to crush Ruri's hope. _"Maybe someday we will."_

Yuya and Yuzu were too caught up in their moment to notice their counterparts' rambling, right now they just wanted to have much needed and much deserved alone time.

 _..._

 _Two Years Later…_

"Unbelievable! Sakaki Yuya has been driven into a corner," Nico Smiley declared, earning cheers and shouts from the massive stadium audience, all of them stoked with excitement from watching the duel.

Yuya and his opponent, it was Sawatari, were dueling in the Action Field "Duel Theater", meaning they were dueling in a Solid Vision materialized Opera theater. Fitting for the two Entertainment Duelists.

"Sawatari is really going all out." Gongenzaka commented. Over the years, Sawatari had gotten progressively better, even finally managing to win duels without assistance. Yesterday he had challenged Yuya to a duel, saying he would end his losing streak against Yuya.

"I know." Yuzu added, slightly frustrated over the sounds of the people behind her.

"Sawatari-san, go for it!"

"Show that clown what a true Entertainment Duelist is all about!"

"Oh My God! I think he winked at me!"

"Somebody's gained quite the fan club." Yuzu dryly said. It was true, Sawatari had become one of the most popular Entertainment Duelists over the years, and with that came fan girls. Speaking of fan girls….

"Come one Darling, show that pretty boy why you're my fated person!"

"Go Yuya, so us a more entertaining show!"

Both Yuzu and Gongenzaka looked down a few rows of seats to see both Mieru and Grace Tyler holding up fans and homemade posters with Yuya's face on them. Next to her sister, Yuzu could Gloria face palming with embarrassment, apparently muttering something that looked like 'Why me?'

"He's not the only one." Came a new voice, which momentarily startled both teens. They looked over to the right to see Sora chilling in a seat and eating a lollipop.

"How do you keep doing that?!" Yuzu asked. Sora had developed a habit of popping up when people least expected it over the last few weeks. "Is this what it was like for Yuya when we first met you?"

"Pretty much." The bluette casually responded, not even looking at his friends as he continued to suck his lollipop. "Never thought Yuya would be in this big of a pinch, less that Sawatari of all people would be the one who put him in that position.

Just as Sora said, Sawatari had a huge advantage. While he had no cards in his hand, he had the advantage of 2500 Life Points, Abyss Actors Sassy Rookie and Twinkle Littlestar in his Pendulum Zones, while on his field was an army of Abyss Actors Wild Hope and Pretty Heroine in Defense Position and Abyss Actors Big Star and Devil Heel in Attack Position. In addition, he had one card Set in his Spell and Trap Zone.

Yuya however was in almost dead, for lack of a better term. His hand consisted of three cards (one of which being an Action Card), a palsy 100 Life Points, and a naked field, with the exceptions of Stargazer Magician and Entermate Odd-Eyes Unicorn in his Pendulum Zones.

"Well that makes two of us." Came the voice of Kurosaki, who sat down next to Gongenzaka. "Sawatari has grown since then. He might actually win this duel."

"Aw, but let's not underestimate Yuya-kun. Who knows what surprise he might have in store for us." Came yet another voice, this one popping up behind Gongenzaka.

"You said it Dennis-wha, Dennis!" The rotund male said when he realized who had appeared behind him.

"That's me." the red head jokingly said with a wink.

"Okay this is going to get old." Yuzu said, tired of people seemingly appearing out of nowhere. "Rin, could you teach me how to do that trick of yours? You know, just in case something happens?"

Rin sighed. _"You knee smash someone one time and you're labeled for life."_

Serena and Ruri looked at their green haired doppelganger with confusion. " _Um knee smash?"_ A bewildered Ruri repeated.

" _Yeah when did that happen?" A_ n equally puzzled Serena asked.

" _Oh I didn't tell you that story?"_ Asked Rin, who had not told the two about the events that transpired when Yugo rescued her from Academia two years back. _"Well it all started right before the whole Parasite incident…"_

From down on the field, Sawatari began to laugh evilly. "Well Yuya, it appears the time has finally come for me to step out of your shadow! Now I, the Neo New Super Mega Ultra Supreme Hyper Strong Duelist Sawatari Shingo, will claim my rightful place as the top Entertainment Duelist in all dimensions while you will be the mere acolyte crawling in the shadow of my glory!"

" _Um, what is he doing?"_ A stunned Yuri questioned.

"He's playing the heel." Yuya answered, which just confused Yuri even more. "He's pretending to be the bad guy."

" _Oh. You think someone like me would have recognized villainy, but nope. Yoke's on my face."_ Yuri said half-heartedly. Over the years, he had managed to start moving on from his past, if only slightly. He'd gotten on better terms with Yuto and Yugo, though he and Yugo still had a couple spats.

" _Yeah if anyone would know villainy it would have been you!"_ Yugo added. _"I mean even if you've gotten better, you're still probably the 'evil' one out of all of us."_ The banana headed boy's words stung Yuri, though he didn't show it.

Both Yuya and Yuto glared at Yugo for the insensitive comment, who didn't seem to realize why. " _What? Do I have something on my face?"_

" _Yugo, you're a good person but you are so dense."_ Yuto replied before looking at Yuya. " _So, how are you going to win? Unless you draw the right card you're going to have a tough time making a comeback. And even then you don't have everything to get all four Dragons on the field."_

"Actually I wasn't thinking of using the others this time around." Though the four Dragons had become his Ace Monsters over the years, Yuya had been working on newer strategies with other monsters from the Extra Deck. After all, a good entertainer can't use the same tricks every time.

"If you're done talking to the voices inside of your head Yuya, just come on and try to topple me!" Sawatari declared, sounding sure of victory.

"Of course, a duelist always-" Yuya started to answer back, before starting to laugh. "'Voices inside of my head', that's actually pretty clever."

Said voices weren't amused. "Come on, that was funny." The three didn't answer back, instead they retreated back into Yuya's mind, somewhat offended by the comment. "Hmm, tough crowd. Anyways, Sawatari," he said turning his attention to his opponent, "You really are a skilled opponent, but I won't give up a duel that easy. My turn, Draw!" Yuya stole a glance at the card he drew, and he was very happy to see what it was.

Suddenly the entire stadium was covered in darkness, except for a pair of spotlights that pointed at Yuya. "Ladies and Gentlemen," he loudly declared, the audience cheering. "My opponent, Sawatari Shingo has proven to be a tough challenge, and I'm glad to call him a rival. However this duel is coming to a close." Moans of disappointment escaped from the audience, though Yuya still smiled.

"But…. The Fun is Just Getting Started!" Disappointment changed to excitement, they knew that whenever Yuya said his famous line, the duel was going to get entertaining.

Some people cheered louder than others. "GO YUYA/DARLING!" Mieru and Grace shouted, loud enough that people outside the stadium heard them. Gloria however, merely face palmed.

"Hmph, just try and overcome my wall of monsters!" Sawatari boasted. Even if Yuya did managed to Summon enough Monsters to overpower his own, Sawatari had a set a copy of Mirror Force in advance.

"For the first part of the finale, I turn your attention to the cards in my Pendulum Zones." Yuya said as he pointed to the monsters in his Pendulum Zone. "I have Scale 1 Stargazer Magician in my left and Scale 8 Entermate Odd-Eyes Unicorn in my right. With this I can Summon monsters whose Levels are between 1 and 8, in other words, Levels 2 through 7!"

Both Stargazer and Odd-Eyes Unicorn bowed towards the audience, before a stylized number '1' and '8' appeared under each one respectively. Soon after, a gigantic version of the Pendulum that Yuya wore around his neck appeared in the sky and began to draw a circle of light. The audience, especially younger children, stared in awe of the beautiful display of light.

"Swing, pendulum of the soul! Draw an arc of light across the ether! Pendulum Shoukan!" Yuya chanted! "Appear now! My monsters!"

The circle drawn by the pendulum suddenly opened up and turned into a hole of light! From it, a ball of blue light flew out of the portal, followed by a ball of green light, then a ball of purple light and finally a ball of yellow light.

"First from my Extra Deck! Wondrous and beautiful dichromatic eyes! Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!" Appearing first on the field was Yuya's signature monster, the dragon that had come to be known as the symbol of the Pendulum Dimension. The beast's red scales covered it from head to tail, with massive pieces of white armor sticking up from on its back. Odd-Eyes' defining trait, it's red and green dichromatic eyes, glowed brightly as the beast roared, declaring its entrance. A holographic indicator appeared next to it, showing a Level of 7 and an ATK of 2500.

"Next is Dragonpulse Magician!" Descending next to Odd-Eyes was a young mage, wearing a white cape similar to Yuya's jacket. In his hand he carried a long bow-like weapon, and his long braided ponytail whipped around as he slashed the weapon in the air. An indicator showed he was Level 4 and had 1800 ATK.

"Now from my hand, Odd-Eyes Saber Dragon!" The third monster appeared, this one being similar in appearance to the first monster Yuya summoned. What differentiated the two monsters was that this one wore silver armor and had four swords sticking out like wings. Its Level was 7, and its ATK was 2800.

"Finally, the Tuner Monster, Nobledragon Magician!" The last monster appeared, this one being a young girl in white and purple magician's clothing, lined with gold trim. In her right hand she carried a massive white tuning fork, with gold trim and a glowing pink orb in between the end of the fork. A holographic indicator revealed her to be Level 3 with her ATK being 700.

"Tuner!" Sawatari gasped. Looking at his duel disk, he saw that Yuya now had two monsters who were Level 7, and a Tuner monster on his field. "With a field, you must be planning…"

"That's right." Yuya said, before holding his hand out to the sky. "First I Overlay Level 7 Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon and Odd-Eyes Saber Dragon!" The two monsters transformed into streaks of light, with the colors matching their respective Attributes, Pendulum being purple and Saber being yellow. A black and yellow galaxy portal appeared in front of Yuya, and the two lights flew into the center before a pillar of lightning erupted.

"Dragon of dual colored eyes! Dwell within the depths of the frigid sea, and awaken the power of the infinite cold! Xyz Shoukan! Come forth, Rank 7, Odd-Eyes Absolute Dragon!"

As Yuya's chant finished, a cold and freezing mist began to envelope the stadium, much to the audience's confusion. On the arena floor, a pair of eyes, one blue and one red, opened up. With a massive roar, Yuya's monster revealed itself and dispelled the mist, revealing the field to now be covered with massive clusters of ice that sparkled brilliantly and reflected the light of the sun. Absolute Dragon resembled the two Odd-Eyes monsters that were used to summon it, only it was covered in crystalline blue armor that resembled ice. On its back the armor formed an 'x' shape that sort of resembled wings. Finally, this dragon had a silver spike protruding from the armor on its right eye. Two orbs of blue light circled the dragons like the planets orbiting the sun. A holographic indicator displayed an ATK of 2800.

The crowd cheered at monsters arrival, though Sawatari was in shock. Yuya had never used that monster before, so he had no way of knowing how to counter it. "Well I guess I should have expected him to summon a new monster out of nowhere." Sawatari whispered through gritted teeth. "But you still don't have anything to overcome my monsters!" The blonde declared before laughing like he had won.

"Settle down Sawatari." Yuya humbly spoke. "After all you seem to have forgot my other monsters. I Tune Level 4 Dragonpulse Magician and Level 3 Nobledragon Magician!"

Sawatari growled "Tsk. How'd I forget about that?"

The female Magician grabbed her staff and flicked one of the two ends, causing the staff to resonate as she transformed into three glowing stars. Those stars quickly transformed into rings of light and surrounded Dragonpulse Magician, who transformed into four stars that aligned themselves within the rings.

"Dragon of dual-colored eyes! Descend from the summit of the heavens, and shake the world with your power! Synchro Shoukan! Come forth! Level 7, Odd-Eyes Meteorburst Dragon!"

As the chant reached its end, a large flaming meteor appeared out of nowhere and fell right on to the field, creating a small explosion. The crowd could only look on as the smoke disappeared, and from within appeared another dragon monster. This Odd-Eyes beast was covered in fiery red armor, the design enhanced by the sparkles of light created when the explosion destroyed the ice clusters. Its right eye was red and its left was blue, both surrounded by a golden mask like plate with a red flame like spike appearing over the blue one. A hologram showed it had 2500 ATK.

The stadium's cheers intensified with the appearance of a second dragon, one that Yuya had also never used before. Yuya smiled as he took in the crowd's cheering, which was only overwhelmed by the roaring of his two dragons. He stole a glance over at Sawatari, who was looking at the small spectacle of light that had been created when Meteorburst Dragon made its entrance. This was the dueling he believed in, the kind he had work so hard to prove was true during the Dimensional War, and seeing it now, years late, it was worth all the hardships.

"I thank you all for your enthusiasm, but the cast isn't all assembled yet." Yuya said as he took out a card from his Extra Deck and held it up to his ear. "Hmm, you want to come right now? Well who am I to deny you your wish!" Yuya momentarily placed the monster's card down before playing the card he had drawn at the beginning of his turn.

"I activate the Spell Card, Pendulum Fusion! With this card, I can perform a Fusion Summon using cards in my hand, on my field, or in my Pendulum Zone! I fuse Odd-Eyes Unicorn and Stargazer Magician in my Pendulum Zones!" Yuya declared.

"Oh come on! You can Fusion Summon with those cards now to!" Said Sawatari, who was beginning to question how Yuya's Deck wasn't illegal.

Both Stargazer and Odd-Eyes Unicorn left the columns of light they had been levitating in, and spiraled together in a display of red and blue as Yuya chanted.

"Dichromatic eyes that illuminate the dark night! Become one with the magician who watches over the stars and point to a new path! Yuugo Shoukan!" He said as he placed the palms of his hands together as if he was saying a prayer. "Come forth! The storming dragon with electrical eyes! Level 7, Odd-Eyes Vortex Dragon!"

Coming out of the portal was a whirlwind of green winds that spiraled upwards. Once they reached the top of the stadium, the gusts dispelled to reveal a new Odd-Eyes monster. This one now wore green armor and had a set of four, small wings on its back. Over its left blue eye, while the other was red, was a green spike that resembled a lightning bolt. A holographic indicator reveled its ATK to be 2500.

"Incredible!" Shouted Nico Smiley, who was just as thrilled as the audience. "Sakaki Yuya has not just summoned one, not two, but THREE new monsters in a combination of consecutive Pendulum, Xyz, Synchro and Fusion Summons!"

Sawatari laughed, not in an arrogant way but more in a sense he was enjoying the duel just as much as the crowd. "Not bad Yuya, incredible even! But you still don't have any monster with more ATK than mine!"

"Don't be too sure!" Sawatari's attention turned to Yuya as he pointed towards his Fusion Monster. "Odd-Eyes Vortex Dragon's monster effect! When this card is Special Summoned, I can return 1 Attack Position monster my opponent controls to their hand!" Sawatari gasped at that statement. He only had two monsters in Attack Position, and one of them just so happened to be the one with the highest ATK on the field. "So of course, I pick Abyss Actor - Devil Heel!"

Vortex Dragon reeled its head back and delivered a gigantic roar. From underneath it, a massive tornado formed underneath, which began to spread and surround he entire arena. Most of the monsters, as well as both duelist, were able to keep a steady hold on the ground. All except for Devil Heel, who was swept up in the winds and transformed into a card that flew into Sawatari's hand. Once he grabbed the card, the winds disappeared.

"Now Yuya-kun has the stronger field!" Dennis declared

"Don't get to a head of yourself. Even if Yuya destroys all of Sawatari's monsters, he'll only have been able to deal 300 damage." Kurosaki reminded.

"Plus all of Sawatari's monsters are Pendulum monsters." Sora added as he popped another lollipop in his mouth. "They'll just come back next turn."

"And Yuya doesn't have enough monsters to deal enough damage to win." Said Gongenzaka, who was starting to think Sawatari might actually win.

"Don't even think it!" Said Yuzu, which earned the attention of her friends. "If anyone has a plan to overcome this problem, it's Yuya."

"Battle! Odd-Eyes Vortex Dragon attacks Abyss Actor – Pretty Heroine!" Yuya declared as he jumped on the green dragons back. The dragon roared as a small tornado appeared under Pretty Heroine, startling her as it lifter her off the ground and towards the sky.

Sawatari smirked. "I was prepared for this! Trap activate! Mirror Force! With this, all Attack Position Monsters you control are destroyed!"

Yuya smiled back at his opponent. "Odd-Eyes Vortex Dragon's other effect! Once per turn, if a card effect is activated, I can shuffle a Pendulum Monster from my Extra Deck to my Deck, and Vortex Dragon both negates and destroys that card! Reverse Hurricane!"

Yuya took the face-up Stargazer Magician from his Extra Deck and placed it into his deck. Vortex Dragon's eyes glowed as a tornado formed around Mirror Force, throwing it up into the air and destroying it. Sawatari gulped, that was the only card he had in case Yuya could come up with a strategy to beat him.

After the card was destroyed, Vortex Dragon flew up into the air, same distance as Pretty Heroine, who was trying her best to keep her skirt down. Paying no attention, Vortex Dragon opened its mouth, and a small series of green winds flew into it, creating a ball of wind. Pretty Heroine took note and sweatdroped, realizing what was about to happen.

"Gale Storm Break!" On command, Vortex Dragon fired a spiraling blast of green winds that completely enveloped and destroyed Sawatari's monster. Once she disappeared, Yuya jumped off of the dragons back and began to plummet towards the arena floor. The crowd gasped at this risky move. Mere feet before Yuya landed, Odd-Eyes Meteorburst Dragon appeared and caught Yuya, who now rode on the dragons back. The audience now cheered at Yuya's stunt.

"Wow! Didn't think he'd ever do something like that. Don't you think Yuzu?" Sora sked, only to be denied an answer as Yuzu just stared at Yuya. A little annoyed, Sora waved his hand in front of her, which broke her concentration and brought her back to reality.

"Huh, sorry. Rin was a little ticked off. She's pretty sure Yugo told Yuya to do that." The pinkette said, wishing she could avoid Rin's shouting from within her head.

Down on the battle field, Meteorburst Dragon dropped Yuya off next to Absolute Dragon. Yuya gave the dragon a look of gratitude before turning his gaze to Sawatari's field and pointing towards Wild Hope. "Next is Meteorburst Dragon! Attack his Wild Hope! Solar Flare Crush" The fiery dragon leaped towards the sky, and was suddenly surrounded by a massive ball of fire, practically a miniature sun.

Sawatari meanwhile, ran around the field, looking for a way to counter the attack. "Action Card, Action Card, I need an-" He stopped and slapped himself on his forehead. "That's right, he got the last one!"

He had no more time to react as Meteorburst Dragon descend down at the cowboy/actor monster and crushed it in a gigantic fireball. Sawatari was thrown back by the massive force of the attack.

"Next!" The tomato head said as he jumped on the back of Absolute Dragon, leaving Sawatari no time to react. "Odd-Eyes Absolute Dragon, attack Abyss Actor – Big Star!" The Xyz monster began to charge towards the demon actor, who throw his arms up, as if asking to be spared. "At this time, I activate the effect of Odd-Eyes Absolute Dragon! When either of our monsters attacks, by detaching an Overlay unit, I negate that attack!" Absolute Dragon lunged at one of the orbs of light circling around it and swallowed it whole, and then stopped moving all together.

Unable to comprehend what had happened, Sawatari let out a chuckle. "Well, I knew you didn't have what it took the end the duel!"

"You didn't let me finish, there's more to Absolute Dragon's effect! After negating an attack, Absolute Dragon lets me summon an Odd-Eyes monster from my Graveyard, and of course that monster is…. Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!"

Absolute Dragon roared before firing a frigid blast at the ground below. The beam opened up a shadowy portal, and from it, Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon reappeared on the field with a majestic roar. It looked at Yuya with its dichromatic eyes, and he smiled at the dragon as he played his last card.

"And now I activate the Action Magic, Wonder Chance! With this, I give one monster on the field the ability to attack an additional time. The monster I pick is Absolute Dragon!"

"This duels' over." Yuzu said, her friends agreeing with her.

""Yup." Sora.

"Totally." Dennis.

"Completely." Kurosaki.

"I never doubted Yuya for a second." Gongenzaka.

"Odd-Eyes Absolute Dragon! Continue your attack on Abyss Actor – Big Star! Absolute Zero Freeze!" Absolute Dragon fired another beam of freezing light right at Big Star, who attempted to shield himself with his hands, to no avail. The blast struck him, and disappeared to reveal he had been transformed into an ice sculpture. Absolute Dragon walked over to the statue, and nonchalantly flicked him on the forehead, breaking the sculpture into a million pieces. Sawatari stood at the scene in shook as his Life Points dropped to 2200.

"Finally! Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon attacks you directly! Spiral Strike Burst!" Odd-Eyes leaped into the air, and fired a swirling mass of red energy right down at Sawatari, who did nothing as the energy consumed him as his Life Points dropped to an absolute zero.

"There we have it ladies and gentlemen!" Nico shouted as the crowd's cheers skyrocketed in sound. "With an incredible display of skill, Sakaki Yuya has won the duel!"

"Yuya…" Yuzu remarked. She looked down at Yuya, who was standing with a massive smile on his face as he warmly embraced the crowds cheering. After all that chaos and pain from two years ago had not left her mind, but seeing how far everyone had come since then, especially her and Yuya, it made her feel….

"DARLING! NOW COME HERE! I NEED TO GIVE YOU A HUG!"

And moment's over. Joy was replaced by anger and Yuzu whipped out her trademark fan. "Okay, that's it let me at her!" She screamed, aiming to run over to Mieru's location only to be stopped by Kurosaki restraining her.

"Someone's jealous." Dennis commented before giving Yuzu a reassuring smile. "But you really shouldn't be Yuzu-chan. After all, we all know you're the only person Yuya-kun would ever have eyes for."

"I know." Yuzu admitted, slowly putting down her fan. "But she needs to take a hint, _I'm_ Yuya's girlfriend." She said before looking at Sora, who had made that abundantly clear when the two of them first told everyone else they were finally dating, he screamed 'About time' at the top of his lungs. "You know all about that, don't you?"

"What I couldn't have been the only one who saw the yearning looks and doey eyes." The blue headed boy said in his defense, although he was basically the captain of the Yuya/Yuzu ship.

"Yeah even I noticed it." Kurosaki added as he let go of Yuzu. Even before the invasion of Heartland, he wasn't one who wore his heart on his sleeves, but he did known when people had feelings for each other. Most of the time anyways, he failed to notice that Yuto and Ruri had been dating for three months before they told him.

Back on the arena floor, Yuya helped Sawatari back to his feet. The blonde was disappointed in himself, once again he had lost to Yuya. "Man, I thought I had you that time."

Yuya laughed. "I know, it was a close Duel. But it was fun, and I think our audience agrees."

Sawatari gave a haughty, but friendly smile as he held out his hand. "You know some day, I will beat you. And when I do, no one will stand above Sawatari Shingo." He boasted.

Yuya gave a return smile and shook his rival's hand. "I look forward for our next duel."

"DARLING!"

Oh no, Yuya knew what that meant. Without giving Sawatari any clue, he started running in the opposite direction of Mieru's screaming, dragging the poor blonde with him. "Hey you could at least let me go first!" Sawatari shouted.

Yuya's counterparts chuckled. " _Nice to see somethings never change."_ Yuto said, finding the whole scene funny.

" _Hey I've been thinking about something."_ Yugo said, sounding concerned. " _Do you think something's going to happen?"_

The other two boys stared at him. " _What do you mean by that?"_ Yuri asked as he folded his arms.

" _I don't know, I just keep getting the feeling that something major, like mind-blowingly huge is going to happen soon and it, ugh, I don't know how to explain it."_ Yugo explained.

Yuto and Yuri exchanged glances, not sure what to say. They both secretly hoped that Yugo's feeling was just something ridiculous and not real. The last time major events had happened to them, they ended up becoming a demon that tried to destroy the world, and their friends had barely managed to win in the end. It may have been years, but what they did as Zarc would forever live with them, and they prayed that nothing like that would ever happen again.

Of course, fate always found a way of meddling with their lives…


	2. The Ritual Dimension

**Welcome to the next chapter, hit it! Okay but first just know, today we are going to the Dimension that many Arc V fan speculated on but alas it never existed. That's right, today we go to the Ritual Dimension!**

 **This would be the part where you cheer!**

 **Yugioh, not mine. We clear? Good!**

* * *

It was an attractive day, the sun was shining and the birds were chirping. The city park was lively, a lot of people gathering for numerous reasons, seeing a few duels, playing a sport, among other things. One person in particular was trying to do something that earned a few looks from passersby.

"Come on, hold still." said the person, holding a small camera in his hands pointed directly at a bird's nest hidden within the branches of a tree. He had bi-colored blue and navy hair that flared upward, and blue eyes that focused on his task. His outfit consisted of a long, white sleeved shirt underneath a green shirt with a purple, stylized 'D', with a blue jacket over that. He also wore blue pants with purple knee-pads held by a brown belt. The sneakers he wore were white with accents of blue. On his wrists were thick, studded purple bracelets and a fingerless glove on his right hand. "How long is this going to-AHH!"

The boy suddenly found himself on the ground, with a soccer ball right next to him. As he rubbed his head, he looked up to see another person standing over him. This one was a girl with red orange hair held up in a ponytail by a yellow scrunchie and red side tails that framed her face, especially her blue-violet eyes. Her outfit was a blue shirt with a sky blue pad over her chest and shoulders. She also had on jean shorts, baby blue shoes and pink stockings that went just above her knees. On her left arm was a yellow brace that stretched from her wrist to just below her elbow. Encompassing her right wrist was a silver bracelet. It was a thin band with a butterfly charm that had a blue gem on the center. She looked at him with an apologetic look. "Sorry, Yuji. But in my defense I did say to look out."

The boy, Yuji, stood up and looked back at her, "You just better hope my camera didn't break Nova." He inspected his camera and saw no damage. "You got lucky this time."

"Few." Nova sighed in relief. "I was not looking forward to buying you another camera for the eighth time in a row." She picked up the soccer ball that had hit her friend in the head and chuckled. "Though maybe it will teach you to pay attention to your…" She stopped when she realized Yuji wasn't present, now he was over by a cluster of lilies with his camera in his hands.

Rolling her eyes, Nova strutted towards her friend and was prepared to pull him up by the ear, but before she could, Yuji spontaneously jumped up. Surprised, Nova fell down to the ground in a manner similar to how Yuji did a few moments ago.

"Alright! I've been trying to… Nova why are you on the floor?"

"Yeesh, Yuji I swear you're going to be the death of me one day."

…..

After the episode at the park, Yuji and Nova took a walk through the city of Domino. Compared to other cities across the world, Domino was a subtle blend of the past and the future. While many buildings that housed major companies and foundations towered above other buildings, most other ones were older and invoked a feeling of walking through the city streets decades in the past. Tourists had often joked that the city was behind the times. There was a large amount of irony in that statement though, especially because the city was home to a company that was known worldwide. The two of them eventually sat down at a café in the city plaza, talking about recent events in their lives.

"Sorry." Yuji said after taking a sip of his drink. "I can't make it that night, photography club meeting." Nova looked at her friend with pouty eyes, trying to convince him to go. "Not going to work."

The girl stopped the façade and laughed. "Eh, worth a shot. Though in all honesty I expected you to say no."

"Then why'd you ask in the first place?"

"Cause I wanted an excuse to knock you out and drag you to the game against your will." Nova joked. Though the two of them were friends, many people had often wondered how they had such a close companionship. Yuji was quiet, never really going out of his comfort zone. Nova, on the other hand, was outgoing and always trying new things. A part from a mutual interest in dueling, they didn't have that many hobbies in common either. Nova had a vivid interest in sports, mainly soccer as she was a star player on their school's team, and Yuji's only point of interest was photography. Many people, including Yuji himself, had referred to him as the 'Dueling and Photography' guy.

"Well sorry but I don't think I have time for that in my schedule. Perhaps we can move it to the game after that instead." Yuji replied, earning a laugh from Nova. The boy tried to conceal the blush that appeared on his face, with mixed results. Looking around for anything to distract him from Nova's, beautiful, laughter, he looked to a nearby billboard and saw an advertisement for an upcoming duel tournament, hosted by the largest in the city, Kaiba Corporation.

"Seriously, why are they even bothering with hosting tournaments in the first place?" Nova sighed. "We all know that Kaiba's going to win any way." The CEO of Kaiba Corporation, Seto Kaiba was the reigning champion of Duel Monsters, and though he rarely entered any tournaments, due to him running a company and all, he never lost.

"Well you have to admit, at least he plays fair. After all he is rich, his real job is going around saying 'Screw the rules, I have money!'" The twosome laughed wildly at that joke, Yuji nearly busting a gut.

After paying their bill the two friends went over to the Kame Game, a gaming shop that was one of the most famous amongst Duel Monsters players. Along the way, they had a conversation, which was rather one sided.

"Okay, how about bungee jumping?"

"And risk the cable snapping and plummeting to my doom? No thank you."

"Well what about, um, how about American Football?"

"Actually, now that you mention it I hadn't really thought about how many bones I could break until just now."

The conversation was one of the main reasons people couldn't get a grasp on their friendship. Every now and then, Nova would spout out things that Yuji could be interested in, but he shoots them down like fighter plane, consistent no after no.

"Ugh, you are so impossible some-" Nova stopped when she saw Yuji staring directly a head of them. She turned her head and saw a bunch of police cars parked outside the Kame Game, and what was of more concern was that the door was completely broken down. The two exchanged concerned looks and headed to the shop faster.

Once they got to the shop they looked inside and saw that the place had been trashed. Cards had been scattered around the floor and shelves had been slammed onto the ground. "It looks like there was a robbery." Yuji remarked, Nova silently agreeing.

"I'd watch my step if I were you two." said a thick male voice. The two silently froze up and looked behind them to see a police officer towering right above them with a suspicious look in his eye. "What are you two doing here." he asked. The two teens didn't answer as they were two afraid of saying the wrong thing and angering the officer.

"It's okay Officer." came an aged male voice. The officer looked aside to see a short old man with wild silver hair and purple eyes wearing a white shirt and green overalls walking towards them with another officer. "These are two of my best customers, they wouldn't be involved in this."

"Mr. Muto." Yuji and Nova simultaneously said, relieved that he had vouched for them. The officer that towered over them went over to talk to the other officer while the old man walked up to them. "Sir, what happened here." asked Yuji.

"Eh, a bunch of Rare Hunters broke in to the shop last night and stole a bunch of new cards." Mr. Muto explained. The Rare Hunters were an underground dueling gang that got their name from stealing rare cards from both shops and their opponents. They had been a plague on the city for years now, and no one had been able to locate their hideout. Not even the name of their leader was known to anyone outside the group, but most rumors portrayed him at ten feet tall, with the dueling skills of a demon crawled up from the depths of hell.

"Rare Hunters, and you're acting this calm." a puzzled Nova said. "Why aren't you more concerned about this?"

The old man gestured for the two of them to come closer, and when they did he whispered, "Come inside the shop and I'll show you." Curious as to what he meant, the two of them followed him inside the shop, evading the wreckage from the robbery as the old man went behind the front counter. "I always prepared for something like this. I knew it was only a matter of time before those Rare Hunters targeted my shop." he said as he pulled something up from behind the counter. "Fortunately I hid the best cards in plain sight."

The old man placed a silver briefcase on the counter and opened it, revealing dozens of rare cards inside of it. Both Yuji and Nova's jaws nearly dropped at just how many he had hidden. "Woah, that was a pretty smart move, right Yuji? Yuji?"

The boy didn't reply to his companion's questions, instead he focused on two cards inside of the case. They were a Ritual Monster and the corresponding Ritual Spell. Something about the cards seemed to just draw Yuji towards them, as if they were calling out for him. Almost as if he was in a trance, Yuji reached out and grabbed the cards, ignoring Nova's protests. Looking at the cards more closely, a strange feeling began to surge throughout his chest. Yuji could feel something from the cards, a pulse, a heartbeat, and he could hear this voice in the back of his head, saying that this belonged to him. "Burning Flare…"

His entranced state was broken by Nova slamming her foot onto his. He gasped in pain as hoped on one foot with the held up. "Sorry, but you weren't listening." Nova impassively said. "Now put the cards back, they belong to Mr. Muto."

"It's fine Nova." Mr. Muto said as he closed the case. "Yuji, it seems as if you really like those cards, you can keep them. Free of charge."

"Really." Yuji gasped, surprised to see the old man give up such a rare set of cards for free. "I can actually pay for these cards and…"

"Nonsense." Mr. Muto said, cutting off Yuji to do so. "Consider it a gift for being such a loyal customer. Now why don't you kids go out and have fun, I still have some stuff to fill out regarding the break in." The two youths thanked him for the cards and left the game shop, leaving the old man sighing. "Aw, to be young, limber and adventurous. Really makes me miss the old days." he said as he recalled the days of his youth. "Wonder if I should change the locks on the doors when I get this sorted out."

.….

"I can't believe he just gave me the card for free." said Yuji, who was still in disbelief at what had just happened.

"I can't believe he gave it to you after you just grabbed them. You're lucky he's fond of us." Nova said, still irritated by how rude he was. "Why'd you do that anyway?"

"I couldn't help it." Yuji answered as he took the cards out of his pocket. "When I saw the cards it felt like I was, possessed or something. There was something about the cards that, I don't know. It's like when you first found your bracelet, you said that you felt like it was just, always meant to be yours."

A loud cry suddenly filled the air, and the two rushed towards it. They ran until they saw the alley where it came from, inside was a kid no older than thirteen. Judging by the duel disk on his arm deactivating as they arrived he had just lost a duel. A few feet away from him, was a trio of people wearing purple hooded cloaks that went down to their knees. One of them wasn't wearing his hood, revealing a rather unattractive face, and had a duel disk on his arm as well.

"Let this be a lesson to you, never challenge the Rare Hunters." the one wearing a duel disk said as he walked towards his fallen opponent with his hand stretched out. Putting two and two together, Yuji and Nova realized that he intended to steal his opponent's cards. Thinking fast, Yuji ran between the two duelists and threw his arms out.

"Buzz off shrimp." the Hunter sneered. Yuji wouldn't budge, causing to Hunter to flash his cohorts a look. With twisted grins on their faces the two walked forward, when suddenly a soccer came out of nowhere and hit one of them directly in the face, knocking him out. Before the other could react, Nova appeared and kicked him right between the legs, causing his eyes to nearly fly out of their sockets.

"That's gonna hurt in the morning." Yuji winced as the goon fell down. He turned his attention towards the thirteen year old and gave him a look. Understanding this, he picked himself up and ran away. Yuji then turned his attention to the leader of the trio and scowled. "What are you people doing, stealing from a kid," he said furiously.

"We're just dueling, the only difference is that we play by the Ante-Rule." the Hunter replied, trying to play innocent. "My opponent agreed to it and I was just claiming my prize."

"And were you going to uphold that deal if you lost?" Nova asked rhetorically, knowing that the Hunter would probably take more than one card.

"Rare Hunters don't lose." he arrogantly replied.

"So you never intended to give him a card if you lost." Yuji exclaimed, not surprised by the man's scam. Something inside him began to fester up, an anger that he had never experienced before. It was like a large fire had started to consume him.

"Listen I don't have to tell you brats anything! Now…" The Hunter slyly said as he reached towards Nova. The girl struggled as the Hunter grabbed her, but she failed to break free. "Hand over your cards or else the girl gets it!"

"Nova!" Yuji shouted with concern and anger.

"So typical, make the girl the damsel in distress." Nova said in a combination of defiance, annoyance and unamusement. "So we can add unoriginality to you Hunters' list of crimes I see." she remarked, causing her aggressor to tighten his grip.

"Quiet, or I'll-"

"Let's not be to rash about anything." said Yuji in a rather calm and sly manner, which surprised Nova. "After all, you seem like a reasonable man." he said as he pulled out the cards he had gotten earlier from Mr. Muto.

"Those cards…" the Hunter said aghast. "Where did you get those?"

"So I take it you were the ones who broke into the Kame Game, and for these card's I'm guessing. Well how about we strike a deal." the blue headed boy offered. "You let her go, and we duel. You win, card is yours, as well as my entire deck."

"NO! Yuji…" Nova shouted, shocked that he would consider such a thing. She was silenced by the Hunter once again tightening his grip.

"Quiet you wench! And what do you get if you win?"

"Well for that to happen, you'd have to lose. And I thought you said the Rare Hunters never lose." he answered with a smug smirk. "So, what say you?"

The Hunter considered it out in his head. Both ways he walked away with a win, so with a twisted smirk he answered. "Deal." he replied as he dropped Nova to the floor, causing Yuji to run over to her.

"Are you okay." he asked, only to get scolded back.

"What are you thinking!? Your entire deck, are you mad?" said an enraged Nova.

"Listen," Yuji spoke softly, no anger in his voice. "For you, I'd give up everything. Now go get the police." he told her, whispering that last part.

"But…" She answered back, only for Yuji to be more forceful.

"Go."

With a heavy heart, Nova picked herself up and ran the way they came, hoping that the police were still at the Kame Game.

"Hmph, you're a fool." the Hunter smirked as he reactivated his duel disk. It consisted of a round, dark grey body that resembled a shield, covered with black trimmings and white patterns. Over the deck slot was a small piece that resembled the head of a jackal. The device hummed to life as a holographic kopesh sword appeared next to the body, being his Monster zones

"I'll be honest," Yuji said as he pulled out his duel disk. It was in a round shape that was primarily blue with white outlines on the edge. In the center of the piece was a touch screen that would assist him in the duel. On one end was the deck slot, where he placed his deck, including the two cards he was gambling on. "I'm not one to be reckless. But hurt someone I care about, the gloves come off!" The device buzzed to life, and an angular blade with a deep blue outline materialized along the side. The two duelist grabbed their opening hands and glared at each other.

"DUEL!"

"Since you started this mess, I'll take the first move." the Hunter declared as he plucked a card from his hand. "I set one monster." he said, placing a card on the blade of his duel disk. A small blue ball covered in thorns surrounded by black wire appeared over a materialized version of the set card. "And then I set one card in my Spell and Trap Zone. Turn end."

Yuji looked at his opponent's field with suspicion. " _Only one monster and a facedown. He's got to be luring me into a trap_." he thought as he looked at his hand. " _Either he wants me to attack his Monster, or he's saving that Trap for something else."_ Deciding to take a risk, Yuji began his turn with a draw. It wasn't the best draw, it was the Ritual Spell he had received, but not the worst. "I summon Fantasy Knight!"

Appearing next to Yuji was a small man with blonde hair wearing a suit of silver armor. In his left hand he held a shield with an irregular shape, and in his right was a broadsword. On the shield and engraved on the hilt of the sword was a stylized 'F' with sharp, pointed ends. On the knight's back was a flowing red cape. An indicator revealed it to have 1600 ATK.

"Fantasy Knight's effect! Once per turn, I can Special Summon a Fantasy Monster from my hand. With this effect, I Special Summon Fantasy Wizard!"

Fantasy Knight raised his sword towards the sky and whispered a strange chant. The blade glowed with power as it released a beam of energy above the duelists' heads. The beam dispersed to reveal a young man wearing red and gold wizard's robes. On his head was a pointed hat with golden trim. The wizard carried a wooden staff with an emerald orb atop the shaft. On the collar of the robe was the same stylized 'F' symbol. Its indicator showed it was with only 1000 ATK.

"When Wizard is Special Summoned because the effect of a Fantasy card, I can add one Fantasy Spell or Trap card from my Deck to my hand!" he proclaimed.

Wizard positioned his free hand over the orb of the staff and whispered a mystic incantation. The orb glowed a faint light as Yuji's deck shuffled itself, a card popping out once it was finished.

"I add the Equip Spell, Fantasy Armament – Power Saber, to my hand, which I now equip onto Fantasy Knight! Due to this card, Fantasy Knight gains 600 ATK and when it attacks my opponent cannot activate any Set Spell or Trap cards. In addition, Fantasy Knight gains 200 ATK for every card in our Spell and Trap Zones. As we both have one each, Fantasy Knight gains an additional 400 ATK on top of the 600 ATK boost from Power Saber!"

The sword that Fantasy Knight carried glowed before it nearly tripled in size. The knight struggled to hold onto it with only one hand, but he managed. The glow from the sword spread towards him, making the young knight surge with power as his ATK rose up to 2600.

Yuji took another look at his hand. As a precaution, he took another card in his hand and placed it on his duel disk. "When there is a Fantasy Monster on my field, I can Special Summon this card from my hand. Come on out, Fantasy Assassin!"

Appearing seemingly out of nowhere, a man wearing an outfit that resembled a combination of a ninja's suit and an assassin's robes. Bandages were wrapped around his upper arms, and around his waist was a small series of throwing stars and in his hands were a pair of kunai daggers. A blood red scarf was wrapped around his neck, the stylized 'F' showing on the front. An indicator next to him revealed a total 1300 DEF.

"Fantasy Assassin's effect! I activate it by targeting Fantasy Wizard!" he declared. The assassin performed a series of movements before pointing towards Yuji's Spellcaster. The shadow of the assassin leapt forwards and entered the body of Fantasy Wizard, the mage's eyes glowing brightly.

"Is that supposed to scare me?" the Hunter said, trying to sound tough.

"No, but this is. Battle! Fantasy Knight attacks your set monster! Blade of Justice!" The Knight dashed towards the projection of the facedown card and stabbed his sword into it, shattering it. However, alongside the card was a series of droplets of blue liquid that stained the ground and walls around them. Within seconds, the droplets gather together and took the form of a series of hideous zombies with glowing eyes and a few with massively disproportionate hands that had mutated to claws. The stench of rotting flesh reached Yuji's nose and nearly made him throw up. The ATK of these creature were shown as 1800.

"What are those things." a repulsed Yuji asked.

"Vendread Revenants." The Hunter replied. "When this monster is destroyed by my opponent's card, I can Special Summon it from my Graveyard, so it didn't matter if you attacked or not."

Yuji snarled, the Hunter had already expected him to try and destroy Revenants. Fortunately, he had also come up with a backup plan. "Mph, that the best you've got. Fantasy Wizard attacks, and just in case you think you're safe, just know that the effect of Fantasy Assassin allows one Monster I control to attack directly, but at the cost of Assassin not being able to attack that turn." he explained. Fantasy Wizard slammed his staff onto the ground as the Fantasy crest appeared on the orb. He chanted a mystical spell in a strange tongue, before firing a bolt of lightning at the Hunter, who shrieked in pain as his Life Points decreased to 3000.

"I end my Battle Phase, and then the other effect of Power Saber activates. I can destroy monsters my opponent controls, up to the number of monsters that declared an attack. I have two, but you only have one monster so I'll destroy only Vendread Revenants!" The sword Knight held shined a bright light that obliterated the cluster of zombies, which also removed the stench from the field.

"When Revenants is destroyed after being summoned by its own effect, it's banished instead of being sent to my Graveyard." The Hunter revealed.

Yuji smirked. "I end my turn."

"My turn." the Hunter said as he drew. He looked at the card and instantly played it. "I activate Pot of Greed!"

"Hey I thought they banned that card!" a stunned Yuji objected. The Hunter ignored him as he added two more cards to his hand. He smiled wickedly as he played his next card.

"I summon the monster known as Vendread Houndhorde." A trio of hideous mutant dogs with glowing blue eyes and multiple sharp fangs appeared, snarling fiercely. "Next I activate one of the cards that I just drew, Pre-Preparation of Rites. With this, I add the Ritual Spell, Revendread Origin, to my hand, and then add the Ritual Monster, Revendread Slayer, who is listed on Revendread Origin, to my hand as well." He continued, adding the two cards to his hand. "And then, I activate Revendread Origin!"

Another copy of Revenants materialized next to the terrible canine trio as the Hunter explained the effects of his Spell card. "With Revendread Origin, I can Ritual Summon a Vendread Ritual Monster from my hand or Graveyard by tributing monsters on my field, in my hand, or by banishing Zombie-type monsters from my Graveyard. I Tribute Level 3 Vendread Houndhorde on my field and Level 4 Vendread Revenants in my hand!"

The groups of zombies shrieked and unearthly howl, loud enough that the lens on Yuji's camera cracked. They melted into puddles of blue liquid that gathered and became one larger puddle. Eternity seemed to pass and nothing happened. The monsters on Yuji's field exchanged glances when suddenly, a demonic hand popped out of the liquid, and then another as the Hunter chanted.

"Undead mutation born from the meddling of nature, rise onto this disgusting world of filth, and become the tyrant who reigns over this land! Gishiki Shokan! Crawl up, Level 6! Revendread Slayer!"

Soon the entire monster had climbed out of the liquid which evaporated as the creature red eyes blazed to life. Slayer was a blue and orange mutation with bony blades poking out alongside its arms, and four bony limbs-like spider legs- stuck out of its back. The creature gave a demonic howl that seemed to turn day into night. He looked down at Yuji's monsters with eyes that seemed to terrify them. Assassin and Wizard backed up in fear of the evil creature while Knight raised his sword and shield in an attempt to stay brave. A holographic indicator appearing next to Slayer revealed its 2400 ATK.

"Battle! Revendread Slayer attacks Fantasy Wizard!" the Hunter commanded. Obeying like a mindless puppet, the Monster raised its bladed arms and dashed right at the spellcaster. "At this time, the effect of Revendread Slayer activates! By banishing the Zombie monster, Vendread Houndhorde, from my Graveyard, Slayer gains 300 ATK!" Slayer's power raised to 2700 as it brought its deadly blades down and bisected Fantasy Wizard, who could only scream in pain as the attack destroyed him. The force of the attack threw Yuji into the air and forced him almost entirely out of the alley as his Life Points decreased to 2300.

"Do you get it now boy?" the Hunter asked mockingly. "You should never have meddled with the Rare Hunters. I set the remaining two cards in my hand and end my turn." With Yuji having taken a massive blow, the Hunter felt confident in his victory.

Yuji on the other hand, smirked at the Hunter. "Due to the presence of an additional two cards in the Spell and Trap Zones, Fantasy Knight gains 400 more ATK." He said as Knight's ATK become an impressive 3000.

…..

Nova ran as fast as she could towards the Kame Game, and saw the police officers head out just as she arrived. "No!" she said, nearly out of breath. Mr. Muto, who was sweeping the grounds around the shop saw her and went up to her.

"What's wrong Nova?" he asked, concerned by her shortness of breath.

"Yuji…alley…Rare Hunters…help…." She said through the pants, understandable enough for Mr. Muto to understand what she was trying to say.

…..

"My turn!" Yuji said struggling to get back on his feet. He turned over the card he drew, and before he could see what it was, it emitted a blinding light that was seen all across the city. Yuji felt himself enter another trance as a series of images flashed before his eyes.

A dragon with two different colored eyes

A dragon with darkened fangs

A dragon whose wings were clear

A dragon with fangs that dripped poison

A dragon with three arrow tipped tails

A dragon with a black heart pulsing on its chest

And finally a dragon surrounded blue fire. This one seemed to be clearer than the others, and it felt like Yuji had seen this one before. The image zoomed in on its glowing eyes, and the dragon roared. Its cried resonated with Yuji, as if it was calling out to him…

"I activate the Spell, Fantasy Quest – Character Selection! By banishing one of three specific Fantasy Monsters from my Graveyard, I apply a different effect! The one I banish is Fantasy Wizard, meaning I add one Fantasy Monster and one Fantasy Spell or Trap card from my deck to my hand." Yuji said as the spirit of Wizard exited his Graveyard and floated into his deck. Two cards popped out, which he added to his hand. "I add to my hand the Level Three Monster, Fantasy Sorceress, and the Spell Fantasy Quest – Storming the Castle. And now, because I added Fantasy Sorceress to my hand outside of the Draw Phase, I can Special Summon her!" he added, slamming the card onto his duel disk.

A female monster with blonde locks materialized onto the field. She wore a robe similar to Fantasy Wizard's, but hers was light brown and gold. She twirled around a metal staff tipped with a shimmering blue sapphire that gave off a faint light. An indicator displayed 1500 DEF.

The Hunter smirked. "You don't think that I'm afraid of your weak monsters, because if you do you're dead wrong pipsqueak!"

"You know, I get you Rare Hunters are supposed to be powerful duelists, but personally I think that they're overrated, or at the very least you're very overconfident," Yuji snarked, infuriating the Hunter. "Seriously, you've done nothing but play amateur moves throughout this entire duel! You could have Normal Summoned one of your Revenants so that Revendread Slayer would gain the effect of banishing one of my Monsters!"

"SHUT UP YOU LITTLE RUNT!" the Hunter shouted. "What gives you the right to meddle with the Hunters anyways?"

"I'll tell you why. There aren't that many things in life I'm interested in, but dueling is one of them. I may not be the type of person to standout and act boldly, but I can't stand back and let a bunch of crooks like you steal cards from people and ruin this game." Yuji furiously replied, a blue aura surrounding him, which startled the Hunter. "You stole from the person I consider a grandfather, you tried stealing from a bystander duelist, and most importantly, you tried to hurt someone I care about more than my own life!" He shouted, the aura around him transforming into the silhouette of a blue wyvern that roared directly at the Hunter before it disappeared. "I activate the Ritual Spell, Burning Sacrifice! With its effect, I Tribute monsters exclusively on my field and Ritual Summon a Ritual Dragon from my hand whose Level equals the Levels of the Tributed monsters exactly! I Tribute Level Four Fantasy Assassin and Level Three Fantasy Sorceress and Ritual Summon!"

The Ritual Spell he had been given only a short while earlier appeared on the field, its artwork depicting a pair of wings raising out of a vortex of blue flames. Both Assassin and Sorceress became surrounded in the same flames before they began to fly through the air. After a series of twists and spirals, the two dive bombed onto the ground, leaving only a smoldering bonfire of blue fire. The fire began to roar and crackled before it shot upward in a massive pillar, piercing the clouds and travelling higher than the stratosphere as Yuji chanted.

"As the gates of this world swing open, the eyes burning with fire ignite, and a new legend is born! Gishiki Shoukan! Descend, level 7! Burning Flare Ritual Dragon!"

The pillar of flames exploded, and from it emerged a wyvern like dragon, blazing in multiple shades of blue. Most of its body was deep cerulean, with its underside being a grayish shade. The membranes of the wings were a shining blue that faded to a darker indigo near the tips. Two long horns oriented to the back stood on the back of the dragon's head, with three blue spikes on each side of the head. On the back of its neck were three glowing spikes. Held in its chest was a large blue orb, held in place by more blue spikes. The dragons eyes were, again blue, and they burned with a fiery strength that was about to be unleased. A holographic display showed its ATK to be 2500.

"That dragon…" the Hunter said with utter shock, " _It's the one Marik-sama had wanted us to obtain, he actually managed to summon it!"_ he thought in fear.

"Burning Flare Ritual Dragon's effect activates! When this card is Special Summoned, all cards in both our Spell and Trap Zones are destroyed! Hellfire Incineration!" Yuji shouted as Burning Flare roared at the top of its lungs, a massive tornado of blue fire erupting under it that spread across the field, destroying Power Saber and the three cards the Hunter had set in his Spell and Trap Zone, revealed to be a copy of Mirror Force, Negate Attack and Shadow Spell.

"You're really overestimate your abilities." Yuji snarled before holding his hand towards Fantasy Knight. "As there are no cards in our Spell and Trap Zones, Fantasy Knights ATK returns to 1600. With that in mind, I activate the Spell, Fantasy Quest – Forbidden Trade. I banish Fantasy Knight and give a targeted monster ATK equal to the ATK of my Knight. I choose Burning Flare, Ritual Dragon!" he declared as the knight disappeared. His dragon roared, its strength increasing to 4100.

"I'm not done yet! Burning Flare Ritual Dragon's other effect. I target one Level Five or higher monster my opponent controls, that monster will have its battle position changed, and Burning Flare will gain ATK equal to either half that monster's ATK or DEF, whichever's higher!" The dragon's eyes glowed a fiery blue, and a vortex of raging blue fire surrounded Revendread Slayer, forcing him into a kneeling position, its DEF shown as 0. The flames disappeared as the ATK or Burning Flare increased to 5450.

"AN ATK of 5450!" the Hunter exclaimed. "B-but my monster is in defense position, and even if it would be destroyed, Revendread Origins has an effect that lets me banish it to prevent Slayer's destruction. I'm safe no matter what!"

"Are you sure about that?" a smug sounding Yuji asked, mush to the Hunter's surprise. "I play my final card, Fantasy Quest – Storming the Castle! This turn, all monsters I control gain the ability to deal piercing damage!"

The Hunter felt his jaw drop, with Slayer's DEF being nothing and Burning Flare's ATK being a massive value, there was only one conclusion he could come up with; this was gonna hurt. "P-p-please." he said as he fell on his knees and started begging. "I was only joking about what I did before. If you want those cards we took from the old man's shop, you can have them back!"

Yuji only scoffed at the man's offer. "You really expect me to believe the words of a man who steals the vessels that contain the souls of my kind, no wonder my forefathers tried to destroy the United World." he said, almost not sounding like himself. "You and those other Hunters can burn for all I care!" He pointed his hand towards his only monster, and calmly spoke. "Battle. Burning Flare Ritual Dragon attacks Revendread Slayer!"

The dragon leaped upwards and began to ascend up into the sky, it kept going, farther than necessary, until it stopped at the same level as the top of a building with a personalized 'kc' logo. Taking in a deep breath, the spikes all over the dragon's body began to glow as blue flames ignited. They gathered in front of the dragon's mouth and grew larger and larger until they formed an orb of fire twice the size of the dragon's body. From down below, the flames looked like a meteor about to fall down on them. With no remorse or empathy, Yuji ordered the attack to go through. "Volcanic Burn of Disaster!"

…..

Yuji didn't know where he was, all he knew was that it was dark and he was laying down on something. He could faintly hear voices, but he couldn't make out who they belonged to. Struggling to lift his eye lids, which felt as heavy as stone, he managed to see the world around him was a white room and he was one some kind of hospital bed. There were a few people around him.

"Shush, he's waking up." came the voice of the person closest to him. His vision managed to clear up to reveal that it was Nova, with Mr. Muto standing beside her on one side of the bed, with a doctor and nurse on the other side. "Hey." she said, gently placing her hand on the bed.

"Hey. What happened?" a disoriented Yuji asked.

"You and Nova ran into some Rare Hunters trying to steal cards from a kid." Mr. Muto answered. "Nova ran off to get help while you dueled one of them. When the we got there, you and all three of them were unconscious. We checked your duel disk and saw you win the duel because of that Ritual Monster I gave you. After that the police showed up and arrested those punks."

"I did." Yuji said. "It feels a bit blurry. I can't really remember all that much." He attempted to get up, but a wave of pain stopped him from even moving his arms.

"Easy," the doctor said. "You exerted a lot of pressure from that duel, you shouldn't move for a while. Nurse take his file and put it in a safe place." He told the nurse, who left without question, and he turned towards Yuji. "That was quiet the reckless thing you did young man. You're luck you're girlfriend and grandfather found you when they did."

"I'm not his girlfriend!" "She's not my girlfriend!" Yuji and Nova exclaimed.

"Oh no, I'm not his grandfather." Mr. Muto said, much calmer than the two teens. Shrugging it off, the doctor left the room. Once he was gone, Nova punched Yuji in the shoulder.

"Ow! What was that for?" the blue haired boy demanded to know as he failed to move his arms.

"That was for challenging a Rare Hunter and almost getting yourself into a coma you dummy!" the redhead answered back rather furiously. Before Yuji could answer back, Nova bent down and gave him a small peck on the cheek. "And that was for trying to be a hero."

"Well thank you for the passive-aggressiveness, Astrid." Yuji joked, trying to hide the faint hint of red that appeared on his face.

"Come on, you know she's my favorite character." Nova responded.

"I don't get it." Mr. Muto said, unaware of what they were talking about.

"Inside joke." Yuji said, before looking at the elderly man with concern. "Mr. Muto, where exactly did you get Burning Flare and its Ritual card in the first place?"

'Well that's the thing, I don't know. And it's not because I'm old and can't remember!" he said that last part assertively. "I mean the cards appeared on display in the shop one day out of nowhere, almost like magic. I never sold them because I wanted to give them back to their rightful owner. I asked every customer who came to the shop, but they didn't recognize them. Eventually I gave up and put them away. Truth be told I forgot the existed until the after the robbery and I looked in the briefcase where I stored the other cards."

"That's the thing." Yuji said, still trying to sit up. "One of those Hunters said that they broke into your shop specifically trying to steal those cards." He revealed, much to the surprise of Nova and Mr. Muto. "It starting to come back to me, and I remember saying something, but it wasn't me saying it. It was like, the dragon was speaking through me."

Nova and Mr. Muto shared a look, before the red head turned towards the desk near Yuji's head, where his duel disk and deck, Burning Flare Ritual Dragon on top, were placed. "I don't know how, but something tells me we just got ourselves into a world of trouble." Nova said, eyes trailing towards the windows of the room.

* * *

Cards in this chapter:

Fantasy Knight

1600 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 4/ Warrior/ Effect

Gains ATK equal to the number of cards in both Players' Spell/Trap Zone X200. Once per turn: You can Special Summon 1 "Fantasy" monster from your hand.

Fantasy Assassin

1300 ATK/ 1300 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Warrior/ Effect

If you control a face-up "Fantasy" monster: You can Special Summon this card (from your hand). Once per turn: You can target 1 "Fantasy" monster you control; it can attack your opponent directly this turn. This card cannot attack the turn you activate this effect.

Fantasy Wizard

1000 ATK/ 1600 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Spellcaster/ Effect

If this card is Special Summoned via the effect of a "Fantasy" card: You can add 1 "Fantasy" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck to your hand. Cards in your Spell/Trap Zone are unaffected by your opponent's card effects.

Fantasy Sorceress

900 ATK/ 1500 DEF/ WATER/ Level 3/ Spellcaster/ Effect

If this card is added to your hand (outside of the Draw Phase): You can Special Summon it. (You can only Special Summon "Fantasy Sorceress" once per turn this way.) Once per turn: You can add 1 "Fantasy" Spell/Trap Card from you Deck or GY to your hand. If this card is Tributed: You can add 1 Ritual Spell from your Deck or GY to your hand.

Burning Flare Ritual Dragon

2500 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ FIRE/ Level 7/ Dragon/ Ritual/ Effect

You can Ritual Summon this card with "Burning Sacrifice." If this card is Special Summoned: You can destroy all cards in both player's Spell and Trap Zones. You can target 1 Level 5 or higher monster your opponent controls: Change its battle position; and if you do, this card gains ATK equal to half that monster's ATK or DEF until the end of this turn (whichever is higher, your choice if tied). If this card is targeted for an attack (Quick Effect): You can target 1 Spell/Trap Card in your GY; Special Summon it as a Normal Monster (ATK 0/ DEF 0) in face-down Defense Position, but banish it when it leaves the field, also switch the attack target to that card. You can only use each effect of "Burning Flare Ritual Dragon" once per turn.

 ** _(Note: If you want a better idea of what this dragon looks like, look up Tagris from Riders of Icarus.)_**

Burning Sacrifice

Ritual Spell

This card can be used to Ritual Summon any "Ritual Dragon" Ritual Monster. Ritual Summon 1 "Ritual Dragon" Ritual Monster from your hand, by Tributing monsters from your field whose total Levels equal the Level of that Ritual Monster. If a Ritual Monster you control is destroyed by battle or card effect: You can add this card from your GY to your hand.

Fantasy Armament – Power Saber

Equip Spell

Equip only to a Warrior-Type "Fantasy" monster you control. The equipped monster gains 600 ATK, also if the equipped monster battles, your opponent cannot activate Spell/Trap cards until the end of the Damage Step. At the end of your Battle Phase: You can target monsters your opponent controls, up to the number of monsters you control that battled this turn; destroy them. You can only use this effect of "Fantasy Armament – Power Saber" once per turn. If the equipped monster would be destroyed by battle or by card effect: You can destroy this card instead.

Fantasy Quest – Character Selection

Normal Spell

Banish 1 of the following monsters from your GY, and apply the appropriate effect, based on the original Name of the monster banished by this effect:

"Fantasy Knight": All monsters you control gain 1000 ATK.

"Fantasy Wizard": Add 1 "Fantasy" monster and 1 "Fantasy" Spell/Trap card from your Deck to your hand.

"Fantasy Assassin": Target up to 2 cards on the field: Destroy those targets; and if you do, gain LP equal to the number of cards destroyed by this effect X500.

Fantasy Quest – Storming the Castle

Normal Spell

Activate only if you control a "Fantasy" monster or a Level 5 or higher Ritual monster. This turn, all monsters you control can inflict piercing battle damage.

Fantasy Quest – Forbidden Trade

Normal Spell

Target 1 monster you control: Banish 1 "Fantasy" monster you control; the targeted monster gains ATK equal to the ATK of the banished monster. You can only activate 1 "Fantasy Quest – Forbidden Trade" per turn.

* * *

 **Well, I hope this was a great introduction to one of the new Dimensions in this story. And in case you are wondering, yes, Yuji and Nova are in the cover art of the story, they're the ones in the middle column.**

 **So my plan for this chapter was a little different. In fact, I have the first part it still written as a different document, instead we were going to continue focusing on the already existing Arc V characters while beginning to introduce the villains. But looking over everything I realized that, in my plan for the story, I hadn't outlined for the Ritual and one of the other sets of Counterparts to appear until the beginning of the second arc. Considering how long we waited to see Ruri and Rin, I decided to have this and the next chapter be introductions to those counterparts before we get to the next arc.**

 **Oh, and before I forget, just to make this clear, despite the resemblance, Yuji and Nova, as well as the other counterparts I will introduce, are NOT incarnations of Zarc and Ray! Apart from the faces, they don't have the same connection to them as the canon counterparts did. How that works, well I can't tell you now. Unless your name is Shimmering-Sky and you already know, in that case go bother her!**

 **Though seriously I'm not telling you right now.**

 **So for shout outs in the reviews:**

 **Shimmering-Sky: Thank you for liking the story's beginning. And yeah, Sawatari never gets a win. But believe me, that'll change.**

 **theTiger39: Like I said in Dimension Crisis, I haven't seen the fandom that nuclear since Z-One not = Future! Yusei.**

 **If you haven't seen 5D's up to that part, then whoops!**

 **Donjustica-sempai: I already told him this, but in case anyone else is wondering, I was the one who drew up the cover-art for the story. It helped me work out the appearances of the counterparts so that when I introduced them it didn't feel like I was making up their appearance last minute, which I have actually done in Dimension Crisis, so yeah.**

 **Vibora1996: Well let's agree to disagree on that first part, and second, calm down! Dimension Crisis is in no ways discontinued, I've just had this idea bubbling in my head after Arc V ended and I didn't want to waste it. In fact, this story was originally meant to be a possible sequel to Dimension Crisis, should the story earn it, but as I continued outlining, it ultimately became a different story.**

 **And just in case there are some people out they're curious, Ren from Dimension Crisis will** _ **not**_ **be appearing in this story. Even though I have a blast writing Ren's sarcastic humor, I already decided long before I published Dimension Crisis to have OC characters be exclusive to only one story and related material. I can actually rant about how I have a problem with OC characters in rewrite stories being overexposed and utilized wrongfully, so I don't want to make that mistake with my stories. Any OC in this story will only belong in this universe I have created and will not appear in other works unless they are related to this story.**

 **nightshroud96: Well now that I've looked at your name I can probably guess where you got it from, but what do you mean by 'if this is bothering…'**

 **AlissonJohns: Hold on give me a second, my Spanish is rusty. Okay well thank you, and not sure how well this is going to go over with you guys, but this story is going to turn into more than than just an Arc V continuation.**

 **So next time, we meet up with another set of Counterparts. Wonder how they're going to turn out.**

 **See you next time!**


	3. Into the VRAINS!

**Our next dimension + set of counterparts, enjoy! Before we start, just know the first few paragraphs is just expositions on Links and the rules that they brought to Yu-Gi-Oh and how they apply here. So if you don't want to hear about things you already know, you can skip the first part. Just saying.**

 **Also prepare yourself, this one is pretty long, well for me at least.**

 **Also I don't own Yu-Gi-Oh!**

* * *

The Link Dimension, a hidden world that hadn't been involved in the wars that had started because of Leo Akaba. Duels in this dimension were a bit more unique than the rest. First of all were the two exclusive zones on the dueling field called Link Monster Zones. Link Monsters were the Dimension's exclusive Extra Deck Summon. A different type of monster without DEF, Level or Rank, Links were blue bordered with a hexagonal pattern. Why there was another blue card when Rituals already existed in other dimensions don't ask. Link Monsters possessed a different type of power indicator, known as a Link Rating, determined by the number of Link Arrows on the border of the artwork. These arrows pointed towards other zones, and when a monster is in a zone that an Arrow points to, that monster will be 'Linked' to the Link Monster.

As for the Link Monster Zones, those are placed in between the two duelists' fields. At the start of the duel, neither Zones belonged to either player until the first player Link Summons a Link Monster and claims that zone as his/hers. The other five Monster Zones, referred to as Main Monster Zones, cannot have Link Monsters be placed in them when Link Summoned. Link Monsters can only be placed in a Main Monster Zone if Special Summoned by other means. However, a player can possess more than one Link Monster even if they already have one in their Link Monster Zone. If they wish to summon an additional Link Monster, they must summon it to one other their Main Monster Zones that the already existing Link Monster points to.

What makes dueling in the Link Dimension so unique was that they do not occur in the real world. Developed by the company of SOL Technologies is an online, virtual reality world known as Link VRAINS, short for Virtual Reality Artificial Intelligence Network System. Within the realm of Link VRAINS, people dueled in a new, advanced manner compared to the other dimensions. Here, duelists could duel using digital cards created from the Cloud Function from SOL Technologies card database, although it was still possible to use the traditional version that used the physical cards, known as 'Card-Insert Duel Disks', which are highly rare. But the true strength of Link VRAINS were the unique duels that could only be done there; Speed Duels.

Speed Duels are a simpler, smaller scale version of the regular duels, known as Master Duels. Here, the duelist starts with only four cards in their hand at the beginning of the duel, there are only three Main Monster and Spell/Trap Zones, and Speed Duels lack an additional Main Phase. In addition, each duelist possess a unique ability known as a Skill. Skills can provide a duelist with a different effect, such as additional draws, Life Point boosts, manipulating ATK or DEF, etc. But each duelist may only use his or her Skill only once during the duel. Once a last art until the resurgence of the Data Storms within Link VRAINS, Speed Duels have experienced a surge in popularity as duelists ride the winds atop their D-Boards.

And entering all this can be done by saying one phrase….

Into the VRAINS!

…..

It was a sunny day in Den City, and the students of Den Academy where preparing for an upcoming dance. Many students had left early to prepare for the event, while a few had volunteered to set up decorations in the school's gymnasium. Tables were placed around the ends of the gym, covered up by blue table clothes with a hexagonal pattern. A few banners were set up in celebration of the event, each one placed perfectly straight. Well except for one.

"Could be a little more to the left." Said a male student. He had fair skin, as well as green hair and eyes. He was also a little on the husky side, and his nostrils were rather small. He wore a slate-colored jacket with light blue trim over a white dress shirt with a blue tie and a pair of black pants and black and white shoes. "You sure you don't need any help?

The person to whom he was speaking shook his head in the negative. "It okay Naoki-kun. I can handle it." The person's bright orange eyes complimented his dual colored electric blue and cyan hair. His attire was simple, consisting of a blue jacket with steel blue trim over a white shirt with a red tie and a pair of black pants and white shoes with a stripe of blue running across the front. "I just have to lean back a bit." He muttered as he moved to his right, the end of a banner in his hand.

"Well don't get yourself hurt, Yuta. Everyone in school's heard about your tendency to collapse from exhaustion every once and a while." Naoki advised. "It's a big talking point really. Whenever someone asks for help, you say yes. You never say no, it's like you can't say no to someone who needs assistance. Then when you've done too much help, you faint and fall on your face."

The other boy, Yuta, rolled his eyes. It wasn't exactly false though, his friends had said he was like a martyr without a cause, so he helped whenever he got the opportunity. It was an admirable quality, but when over exercised, he would collapse. Ignoring the other boy's words, he carefully tied the banner to one of the hooks on the gym walls and climbed down on the ladder. Taking a few steps back, he saw that the banner, which had 'Den Academy Fall Formal 20XX' written in steel blue letters, positioned perfectly. "See what I tell you." He told Naoki, who was about to answer when Yuta saw someone standing over by the bleachers. "Hey Kasumi!" He yelled while waving over to her.

Kasumi's eyes were a vibrant pink, framed by glasses with thick blue frames. She wore a white and yellow-striped hat, positioned snug around the back of her head. Her dark blue hair was long, going to her lower back, and was tied down into two pigtails. Most of her forehead was exposed because her bangs had been swept to her right, and falling to the side of her face were two lighter blue side tails. Her attire consisted of a light blue and white shirt, a blue skirt over shorts held in place by a purple belt wrapped around her waist. Going to the middle of her lower legs were green yellow socks, with purple boots covering her feet. Around the circumference of her right wrist was a silver bracelet, with a blue gem placed on a droplet shaped platform. She nervously waved back as her friend approached.

"Didn't expect you to show up since, you know, public events aren't really you're thing." Yuta said as Kasumi pulled out a tablet from the blue bag next to her. "Did you come to help out or-"

"Actually," Kasumi said in a low voice, cutting off Yuta to do so. "I came here to show you something." She pressed a few apps on her tablet and the screen displayed a graph with a line zig-zagging up and down. The graph itself was titled 'KoH Activity', and Yuta knew what she was trying to talk about; the Knights of Hanoi. A mysterious group of hackers that appeared inside of Link VRAINS five years prior. No one knew anything about them, except they all had identical avatars and would appear at random, attacking Link VRAINS and the people inside. The only clue that most people had regarding their goal is related to the mysterious 'Cyberse' type of monster cards, which had appeared in the network of Link VRAINS not long before they first appeared. "According to SOL Technologies' data, the Knights' activity has been relatively low, but that doesn't mean they've been quite now exactly." Yuta frowned knowing what Kasumi meant. Three months back, he had begun to fight against Hanoi while in Link VRAINS. He was like an assassin in the night, dueling against any knight he saw and taking them out in duels. The reason the chart showed very little activity was because of him.

Kasumi began to speak when Naoki, curious as to the conversation, interrupted them. "What are you talking about." He asked.

"N-nothing, nothing at all." Kasumi stuttered quietly, hiding the tablet face down against her skirt. "Pardon me." She whispered out loud while scooting away from the two boys, leaving Naoki confused.

"She's shy." Yuta told the other male before turning his attention to his friend. "Kasumi, this is Shima Naoki, he's a member of the school's Duel Club." He turned his attention back to Naoki, "Naoki-kun, this is Kasumi."

"Oh, so she's the famous Kasumi you mention a lot." said Naoki as he held his hand out towards Kasumi, unaware of the frightened look on the girls face. "It's an honor to finally see you face to face. Hey, are you a duelist just like Yuta?"

"W-well," Kasumi began while averting direct eye contact, "I do have a deck. B-but I don't duel as often as Yuta does. Besides, I'm not that good a duelist anyways."

Yuta disagreed with that statement. "Don't be so self-deprecating, you're a great duelist. Hey, I have an idea, maybe the two of you should have a duel in Link VRAINS tomorrow and-"

"DON'T MESS AROUND!" Naoki shouted suddenly, startling the two, especially Kasumi. "Link VRAINS is for the champs, the best of the best. It's like a sacred temple, you don't defile it! But the duel's not a bad idea, I can teach her a thing or two, she doesn't seem to be a good duelist." Naoki offered, earning a whisper from the girl. "What was that?"

"You're not that good a duelist are you?" She asked surprisingly bluntly. "I can tell that by the facts that, first, you are wearing one of the most recent models of duel disks, which means you aren't as concerned about the cards that duelist had used for years before Link VRAINS was established as you are fitting in with your peers. Second, the fact that you have never been to Link VRAINS hints at a lack of confidence. Third, and this is just my own feelings, but you judge a person by how first glance, and what kind of duelist does that anyways?"

Naoki stood slack jawed, absolutely stunned by Kasumi's on the nail evaluation. "Yeah, she's also really smart and very good at reading the situation." Yuta said, awkwardly rubbing the back of his head.

"That being said I can tell a few more things about you. First, the fact that you have a recent model duel disk means that you are very up to date on the world around you. Second of all, your eyes perk up with excitement at the mention of duels and duelists, which shows that you really love the game. Third and finally, though you did judge my rather limited abilities, you were being nice to a shy and timid person who struggles with their confidence, like myself. So overall, while you might not be good as a duelist, you are a decent person. Kasumi added, though off course Naoki was too miffed to see any positives.

"Wha-wha, how is that shy and timid?" He questioned, eyes nearly bulging out of their sockets. "Seriously she just had a full on discussion about me, and she calls herself shy."

"Well, around new people." Yuta confessed. In the past, Kasumi would often hide behind him when someone approached, and when they spoke to her she'd whisper her response and stutter. He'd helped her try to be more social, getting her to start talking to people more. They'd made progress, but with only speaking to one person at a time, and only with those she was familiar with.

"I'm gonna head over to the club room and see if I left my bag there." Naoki said, really an excuse to leave. "Who goes around telling people why they're a bad duelist?" He muttered somewhat irritated.

"Well that went well." Yuta said. Kasumi denied it, but he disagreed. "Yes it was, you actually managed to speak to someone without stuttering for most of the conversation."

"Yeah, because I told him straight to his face he's not a good duelist. Scratch that, I basically told him he's horrible at it. Go me." The blue head girl said with a saddened look in her eyes. "If that's the progress I've made, then statistically speaking, I calculate that I'll be able to have a regular conversation with a group of people in about, twelve years at the latest."

"Oh come on, you don't know that. You may be smart but even you can guess everything accurately."

"First, it's not a guess it's a prediction based on data from the real world. And second, besides our friendship, I must ask why you keep trying to help me improve on my interactions with people." Kasumi said as she adjusted her glasses

Her friend shrugged. "I know, it's just…I just think that, if another living thing being in trouble or afraid, you shouldn't just stand around. When someone needs help, you have to be ready to put your own needs aside and help." Yuta looked outside a window, staring at the cloudless sky, "It kills me to think that there are people out there who would try and hurt other people out there." He said looking Kasumi in the eye. "That's why I won't stop until Hanoi pays for all the people they hurt, all the lives that they ruined."

"Yuta," Kasumi whispered, knowing why her friend felt so strongly about life. "Why don't you just take some time for yourself? You've been doing a lot lately, between looking for the Knights of Hanoi and helping others, you need some time to just be you."

Yuta felt a little guilty, remembering the last time he had taken time for himself. However, Kasumi had a point when she said he been doing much lately. "Alright." He answered, "I have a good idea of what we could do. Come on!" He took off, Kasumi trialing behind, trying to shout that she didn't mean for her to take a break as well.

…..

Meanwhile, within the depths of the virtual world, trouble was beginning to stir.

"Revolver-sama, we've received information about the duelist who has been interfering with our mission," said a man in a white suit. "We don't know his identity, but we have determined that in his deck are Cyberse monsters."

The other person, Revolver, clenched his fist and snarled. "Cyberse…. What else do you know about him have you figured out?"

"Not much, he seems to be very good at covering his tracks. In Link VRAINS he's little more than a rumor among the general population." The first man answered. "However, from the observations gathered by those he's defeated, he's got a strong sense of compassion and will not turn his back on anyone in need of assistance."

Revolver thought about this for a moment. Whoever this person was, he would not stop as long as the Knights continued to eliminate the Cyberse. "Well then the solution is obvious. We just use his sense of compassion to our advantage. Summon the other members of our group here at once. I have a plan to deal with our little trouble maker..."

…..

"A hot dog stand, that's you're idea of relaxation?" A bewildered Kasumi asked. She had followed Yuta out of school and chased him down five blocks to find him eating a hot dog from a hot dog truck I the city center. "I assume that based on the large screens that show footage inside of Link VRAINS being on the opposite side of us you intended to eat while watching duels."

"Nope." Yuta answered with a full mouth. "I just wanted a hot dog. I didn't really have a plan after that." His friend rolled her eyes and sat down. "But we can watch duels if you want. I mean if…."

Kasumi turned her eyes away from Yuta for a second and looked at the screens. The MC standing in on the ground in between them was shouting and entertaining the crowds as they saw the duels within the virtual reality of Link VRAINS. A brief movement in the left corner of the one of the far left caught her attention. It looked like a person in a white outfit in a steel gray mask appear. It was small, but she could tell what it meant.

"Hanoi." She said, which instantly got Yuta's attention.

Suddenly the excitement from the crowd disappeared and were replace with gasps of fear. Yuta looked over to see that a massive, black mechanical dragon was now inside of Link VRAINS, a Knight of Hanoi riding atop its head. The dragon was shooting bursts of fire around it, destroying buildings and incinerating any person who got caught in their path. Though it only meant that their accounts were terminated, it might mean harm for their real life bodies. If a person within the virtual world takes enough damage, the pain will be transferred to the real world, and if they took enough the person might enter a comatose state or worse, even death.

"They're attacking innocent people." Yuta said with an uncharacteristic glare. "I can't let them do this." Sharing a look, the two friends knew what to do. Yuta reached into his bag and grabbed his duel disk, a metallic blue card-insert version while Kasumi opened up an app on her tablet. Yuta ran around to the back of the hot dog truck and made sure no one was looking. Taking a deck of cards out of his pocket, Yuta placed them in the deck slot, preparing to log in. "Deck set. Into the VRAINS!"

The words 'Into the VRAINS' appeared on the side of the device, and Yuta was enveloped within a sphere of light. Inside the sphere, Yuta became surrounded by a series of charts, data and other computer stuff. His body glowed and faded away to reveal a new outfit. He now wore a blue and green body suit with yellow trim, a gun metal gray belt wrapped around his waist. His once downward hair now swept upward and had purple highlights. They only thing that remained the same were his eyes.

Within seconds Yuta had entered the virtual world. Now standing atop an apartment building, Yuta could see the mechanical dragon attacking the surrounding area. Many people who tried running away were struck by the fire and vanished.

"His movement is strange." Came Kasumi's voice. The app she had opened on her tablet allowed her to communicate with Yuta even if he was inside the virtual world. "He's just attacking all over the place, he doesn't seem to be after anything."

"It doesn't matter." He said seriously. "All I can see is Hanoi doing what they did before, hurting people." Hearing the sound of a scream, Yuta looked to see what looked like the avatar of a small child on the ground with the Knight looming right over the kid. Though he could barely tell, he was sure he saw a twisted smirk on the Knight's face. " _Not again. I won't let something like that happen again_." Without thinking twice Yuta jumped about twenty feet from where he was standing, grabbed the child and dodged the beast's flames.

Shocked by the sudden movement, the Knight asked, "Who are you?" Yuta turned around and looked at the Knight with a furious look. The scanners on the Knight's mask looked over him before they displayed the words 'Cyberse Detected.' "So, are you the one who's been interfering with our business these last few weeks?"

"Yes." Yuta answered. "Why? Why did you attack all these people?"

"Why else." The Knight nonchalantly replied, "I was trying to lure you out." The man's response both angered and hurt Yuta. He was angry because the Knights had possible killed people just to get to him, and he was hurt for the exact reason. "You've been a thorn in our side for a while, too long if you ask me. And I want to know why?"

Clenching his fist and looking the Knight directly in the eye, he let out his anger. "Because I hate people like you! People who go around hurting innocent lives, people who would destroy the happiness of others just for your own amusement!"

"You think we're the bad guys here?" The Knight asked. "The real villains here are those who created the Cyberse monsters, including the ones that you carry around in your deck." The Knight pointed towards Yuta and said in a louder voice. "Those who put their faith in technology will bring about their own end, and the Cyberse are proof of that. The Knights of Hanoi will prevent that, we are the sword and shield of humanity that will protect them from their own undoing!"

"By almost killing people in Link VRAINS like you just did!?" The younger said angrily.

"It's their own fault for ever entering Link VRAINS in the first place!" His foes said without a trace of empathy. "If they had chosen the real world instead, no harm would have befallen them!"

"Face me." Yuta snarled. "Face me in a duel and face judgement for your crimes!"

"Great, he's a self-proclaimed judge." Muttered the Knight. "Who are you anyway?"

"I am the guardian who brings peace to the innocent. I am the one who brings judgement on the villainous. I ride the Data Winds, fighting those who dare hurt life. I am called, Storm Rider!" Yuta said in a righteous voice.

"Storm Rider, really? That's the best name you could come up with." The Knight scoffed.

"I tried to tell you." Kasumi whispered, trying to keep herself from being heard.

"Well to be fair, you guys are all named 'Knight of Hanoi', so I'm not sure if you should be saying I have a bad username." Countered Rider, who got a glare from the Knight in return.

A breeze blew past the two, and a large purple and blue wind came up behind them, the Data Wind was surging through Link VRAINS. Leaping into it, their D-Boards raced towards their owners and caught them. Smiling smugly, the Knight slammed his into Rider's, almost throwing him off his board. Despite the attempts, Rider stood firmly on his D-Board and rocketed past his foe. Standing below and on virtual buildings, many people within Link VRAINS who had avoided the Knight's assault watched on as the two began their match.

From the real world, Kasumi watched, hoping that Yuta would pull through. "Please." She thought, "Do your best, Yuta."

"Speed Duel!"

The duelist shouted as they drew their opening hands, four digital cards appeared in front of the Knight while Rider took the top four cards off his deck. "Since I'm ahead I'll take the first turn. Since there are no monsters on my field, I can Special Summon this card from my hand. Come, Evolink Ornithom!" Rider declared as he placed the card on the blade of his disk.

Manifesting next to Rider was a skinny man with thin, gangly limbs. He wore a black body suit with plates of orange armor on his chest, shoulders, elbows and knees, with matching fingerless gloves and boots. Running across the black suit were blue lines that resembled circuit patterns. On his head was an orange helmet that resembled the dinosaur Ornithomimus, with a black visor covering his eyes. Stretching out from his lower back was an orange tail. An indicator appeared next to him, showing an ATK of 1300.

Rider was about to make another move when the Knight just burst out laughing. "That-that's the Cyberse I detected in your Deck? That thing looks like he'd break in half from even the slightest hit," he taunted.

"Laugh it up, but I'll show you my deck's true strength." Rider said, holding his arm out towards his monster. "When Ornithom is Special Summoned by his own effect, I can add 1 Evolink card from my deck to my hand." A card slid out from his deck, which he then showed to his opponent. "I add the Field Spell, Evolink Network, and then activate it!"

The card appeared next to Rider, depicting multiple people in cybernetic body suits living in a virtual prehistoric bio dome with circuit patterns running across everything. "When this card is activated, I can add another Evolink card from my deck to my hand. I add the Level 4 monster, Evolink Raptor. In addition, while this card is on the field, Evolink monsters gain 300 ATK!"

Evolink Network's card began to emit a bright glow onto the field. Ornithom stood in the light and felt power surge throughout him. Strengthen by the field's effects, he shouted a distinctly bird like cry as his ATK went to 1600.

"Next I Normal Summon the Evolink Raptor I added to my hand!"

Appearing next to Rider was a man who was more muscled compared to Ornithom. He wore a black body suit with blue circuit patterns and green armor plates on his chest, shoulders, elbows and knees, with matching fingerless gloves and boots. On the tip of each boot was a massive, metallic sickle-like claw, and attached to his arms were a series of green feathers that resembled wings. He also wore a green helmet that resembled the head of a Velociraptor with a black visor covering his eyes. Attached to his lower back was a green tail with feathers. A display showed his ATK going from the original ATK of 1900 to 2200.

"When Raptor is Normal Summoned, I can add one Evolink Adaptation Spell or Trap card from my Deck or Graveyard to my hand. I add the Quick-Play Spell, Evolink Adaptation - Titanium Wings, to my hand." Rider said as he once again added a card from his deck to his hand.

"So is that all your Deck can do, search cards?" The Knight questioned sarcastically. "If that's all you can do, this duel will be easier than I thought."

"Don't count on it." Said Rider as he took another card from his hand. "When I control an Evolink monster, I can Special Summon the Level 3, Evolink Pterordax, from my hand!"

A portal opened up, and gliding out of it was a man in a black body suit with blue circuit patterns and purple armor plates on his chest, shoulders, elbows and knees, with matching fingerless gloves and boots. Attached to his arms were a pair of purple bat-like wings with circuit patterns on the membranes between the joints. Upon his head was a purple helmet that resembled the head of a Pteradactyl, with an elongated head crest at the back of it and a black visor covering his eyes. A spindly tail was attached to his lower back. An indicator next to it revealed a DEF of 1200.

"When Pterordax is Special Summoned, I can add another Evolink Adaptation from my Deck or Graveyard to my hand. I add Evolink Adaptation - Data Camo."

After putting the cards in his hand, Storm Rider looked at his field. "Alright, now everything is ready," he muttered to himself, a familiar presence swelling up inside him. " _Not yet, I can't summon you just yet._ " He said internally, " _I'll call you soon, but not now_." Dashing forward, Rider held his hand out and declared, "Appear, the circuit that transcends evolution!" A bolt of electricity fired from his palm and created a strange portal, one that resembled the Link Arrows around the artwork of Link Monsters. Without fear or hesitation, Rider smashed his D-Board through the portal, his monsters riding alongside him. Turning back around, he now stood in a realm of multiple hues of red circuitry patterns, with the portal the only thing staying the same.

"Arrowheads confirmed!" Rider shouted, now floating within the realm of the portal. "The summoning conditions are at least two Effect Monsters. I set Evolink Raptor, Pterordax and Ornithom in the three Link Markers!" All three of Rider's monsters leapt towards the frames of the portal and became arrows of red light that entered the arrows and lit them up. The ones that were Raptor and Ornithom entered the ones on the top left and right respectively, while the one that was Pterordax entered the one in the bottom.

"Circuit Combine!" Yelled Rider as a wave of energy was discharged from the portal. "Ruler of those who dwell within the digital realm, manifest from your virtual environment and declare your reign! Link Shoukan! Transcend evolution, Link 3! Evolink Tyrannus!"

Rider flew out of the portal, followed suit by a massive, muscled humanoid figure. He wore a black body suit with golden circuitry patterns running across. On his chest was a massive red-orange plate of armor with yellow designs that resembled tribal markings. His legs were covered up by crimson armor and boots, while his arms had no armor. Instead they were wrapped up in pieces of torn, ripped of clothe that barely hid his physique. On his head was a red helmet that resembled the head of a T-Rex, with a black visor covering his eyes and red tribal markings glowing on his face, one of which across his left eye that glowed through the cover of the visor. On his lower back was a large brick red tail with scarlet stripes placed horizontally. In his right hand he wielded a massive blood red axe that was nearly twice his size. The Link Monster raised his weapon skyward and released a loud roar that shattered the windows of buildings he passed by. A nearby indicator showed his respectable 2600 ATK, which was boosted to 2900 by Evolink Network.

The Knight of Hanoi gritted his teeth. "His first turn and he's already summoned a Link Monster with almost 3000 ATK. What other powers does he possess?"

Whoa who! Go, Storm Rider!" Kasumi cheered, loud enough that people began to stare. Noticing this, Kasumi grabbed her tablet and hid her face behind it.

Rider took the two Evolink Adaptation cards he added to his hand and placed them in his Spell and Trap Zones. "And finally, I place two cards face down and end my turn. Now, face me, Hanoi!"

The Knight smirked. "If you wish." He said as the line on his outfit began to glow. The Knight placed his hand on the digital slot of the wristlet that was his duel disk and declared, "Skill, Double Draw, activate! During my Draw Phase, I draw two cards instead of one." Two cards popped out of the slot, which he removed from their position. Disappearing from his fingers, two more cards appeared in front of him.

"A Skill already!" A stunned Kasumi spoke, "And it's a rare one. There must be something more that he's trying to do."

"Don't worry." Rider reassured. "Even if he gets that dragon monster out, he won't be able to use it."

"Are you sure about that?" Came a new voice. Rider looked up to see another Knight of Hanoi glide right in front of him and move next to the other one. Four cards appeared in front of the newcomer as he the two duelists smirked.

"What's this!?" said the duel MC in the real world. "Another Knight of Hanoi has entered the fray. It seems that they intend to duel two versus one! Will the mysterious Storm Rider be able to overcome this disadvantage?"

"So this was your plan from the start." Said Rider, already knowing the answer. "You planned on luring me into a duel just so you could gang up on me."

"Of course!" Said Knight #1.

"We knew you've been able to defeat us one on one." Added Knight #2. "So our leader planned to take you out the old fashioned way: strength in numbers!"

"Of all the underhanded tricks, ganging up on someone!" Kasumi angrily whispered, watching the scene unfold. "You think you can handle two of them at once," she asked concernedly.

"I've dealt with Battle Royal-style rules in the past, I can deal with two of these guys." Rider answered.

"Yes but that's because your opponent's also went after each other. This time they're both after you, and I estimate a ninety two percent chance of them using the exact same decks, making the odds of your victory less than thirty percent positive!" Said the worried girl.

"Kasumi, you know I don't understand you when you talk numbers."

The girl sighed. "Well in layman's terms, you're in trouble."

"I activate the Continuous Spell Network Crash!" The first Knight said as the card appeared in front of him. "While there are two or more Machine monsters in play, I negate the effects of all Cyberse monsters on the field. Next I activate Dual Summon, allowing myself two Normal Summons or Sets." Smirking, the Knight gestured towards two of the cards in front of him. "Come, Hack Worm! And also Jack Wyvern!"

Two monsters materialized next to the Knight. One was a black mechanical worm with glowing green lines running along the sides. The other was a similar looking monster, but with large spikes for wings and six small legs clustered on its underside. The two were Machine type monsters with ATKs of 400 and 1800 respectively.

The Network Crash card suddenly released a pulse of energy that was aimed right at Tyrannus. Once it made contact, Tyrannus became surrounded by a dome of blinding light, so bright Rider had to cover his eyes. The light began to fade shortly after, revealing to Rider's shock that his monster was trapped in black chains wrapped around its arms and torso. The lines that ran across the monster's suit and disappeared, further supporting how it was weakening him. Tyrannus struggled in vain, the chain's hold over him too strong. A nearby indicator showed his ATK fall down to 1900. "Did I mention that for every Machine type monster I control, all Cyberse monsters on the field lose 500 ATK!" Said the first Knight with a superior tone.

"You see, you're no match for us!" Added the second Knight. "We've trained to fight against Cyberse Decks, and so long as they exist a duelist like you can't overcome us!"

Rider grimaced. " _If he had only summoned one of those monsters at his center Main Monster Zone,"_ he thought. _"Tyrannus has an effect of gaining 400 ATK every time a monster is summoned to its Link Point, as well as making one monster my opponent controls lose 800 ATK."_ This certainly was providing to be a challenge.

"Next I activate Spell Foolish Burial, and send Cracking Dragon from my Deck to my Graveyard!" The Knight declared before gesturing to Jack Wyvern. "Jack Wyvern's effect! I banish it and Hack Worm on my field to Special Summon a Dark Attributed monster from my Graveyard! Appear Cracking Dragon!"

The two monsters began to glitch and pixelate in and out of existence before disappearing completely. Taking their place was the same, massive dragon that had been destroying Link VRAINS earlier. Opening its mouth the dragon released a high pitched roar before rushing forward, almost knocking Rider off his board, and rammed into a nearby building, turning it into nothing but data. An indicator revealed a powerful 3000 ATK.

"However, now that there is only one Machine monster on the field, the effects of Network Crash weaken. Your monster regains 500 ATK and its effects of no longer negated." The first Knight said as the chains around Tyrannus disappeared, freeing the warrior from his shackles. "Though even this won't save you! Battle!" He declared, "Cracking Dragon attacks Evolink Tyrannus! Traffic Blast!"

The mechanical dragon opened its mouth, and a massive inferno of blue flames aimed right at Rider's monster. The burst hit dead on and Tyrannus howled in pain. Though he was behind the monster, Rider could feel the heat of the fire, a burning pain beginning to envelope him.

Struggling through the immense pressure, he declared "Counter Trap! Evolink Adaptation – Data Camo! By targeting Tyrannus, this card prevents it from being targeted for attacks or your card effects until the end of this turn!" Regaining some strength, Tyrannus rolled out of the blast as Rider rode along another path in the data storm. Cracking Dragon and the Knights looked around for any signs of Rider and his monster, but they found nothing.

The first Knight snarled. "Turn End." As soon as he said that, both Rider and his monster suddenly reappeared in front of them, Tyrannus looking completely fine.

"My turn!" The second Knight wasted no time and played a card. "I activate the Continuous Spell Dragonoid Generator by paying 1000 Life Points!" The card appeared in his Spell and Trap Zone, releasing a burst of electricity that hit its owner. The Knight braced himself as the card decreased his Life Points to 3000. He smirked as he gestured to the card afterwards. "Behold, this card was given to me by the leader of Hanoi himself!"

"The leader of Hanoi himself!" A shocked Kasumi parroted. This worried Kasumi a lot. Yuta had been doing all of the frontline fighting himself, and to stop him Hanoi had sent two men to gang up on him with one of their leader's own cards. Curious as to what this card did, she tapped her tablet a few times before an enhanced image of Dragonoid Generator appeared. Reading the text, she began to put together what the duelist was planning. "Oh no…."

"Up to twice per turn, Dragonoid Generator allows me to Special Summon two Dragonoid Tokens. However," the second Knight explained, "I cannot Special Summon from the Extra Deck for the rest of the turn. I Special Summon two Dragonoid Tokens and Tribute them to summon another Cracking Dragon!"

A pair of green and blue dragonesque statues with black horns appeared before the Knight, each having an ATK of only 300. As quickly as they appeared, they were replaced by another copy of Cracking Dragon. With another Machine type monster on the field, the effects of Network Crash reactivated and the chains that were previously used to bind Rider's Link Monster reappeared around it. "Next," the Knight continued, "I equip Cracking Dragon with the Equip Spell, Net Virus Infection. Now Cracking Dragon, attack Tyrannus! Traffic blast!"

In a repeat of the last battle, Cracking Dragon released an inferno of blue fire at Rider's Link Monster, but this time the attack was successful, and Tyrannus was destroyed. "At this time, the effect of Net Virus Infection activates! When Cracking Dragon destroys a monster, you take damage equal to half that monster's original ATK!" Once the flames were done with Tyrannus, they went straight for Rider, enveloping him in their heat. Rider screamed in pain, the flames felt real, like they were trying to consume him. It was suffocating. His Life Points decreased to 2100 as he fell to his knees, coughing furiously.

The Knights smirked. "Turn end." Said the second one with a smirk. "At this time, the other effect of Dragonoid Generator activates! You must summon Dragonoid Tokens to your field equal to the number I summoned!"

One at a time, two more Dragonoid Tokens appeared on Rider's field, but they weren't gifts.

"Because you summoned a monster," the two Knights spoke simultaneously, "Cracking Dragon's effect activates! The summoned monster loses ATK equal to its Level times 200! Because there are two Cracking Dragons, both monsters lose 400 ATK and you take the 300 lost twice!" The two mechanical dragons roared, and a strong wind blew from their direction, decreasing the ATK of the two Tokens to zero while reducing Rider's own Life Points by 600, now they were at 1500.

Rider struggled to feet back to his feet, the power from Hanoi's attacks were stronger than usual. " _They're serious about this fight. I'm barely holding on here."H_ e said internally. "M-my-" he stuttered, trying to draw a card when suddenly…

" _Atashi no Turn_!" A new voice cried out, much to the surprise of the three duelist. They turned their attention behind them to see another duelist, riding a blue and light green D-Board, heading towards them. She had curly blue hair that went down to her mid-back and an elegant turquoise mask around her eyes. Painted over her cheeks were indigo raindrop markings. Her outfit was a sleeveless, navy blue mermaid dress with light purple trim and small, shimmering sapphires embedded on the hemline. The accessories she wore were a pearl and sapphire necklace, a gold brooch with a green quartz crystal pinned over her heart. On her left wrist was a card-insert Duel Disk that was colored a pearly white, while around her other one was a familiar bracelet.

"Kasumi." Rider whispered, a combination of exhaust and surprise.

"Who are you?" One of the Knights demanded to know.

"I am the mistress of the water, the mysterious siren who fights with the grace of the waves. I am the duelist, Marine Mask!" She revealed, "And now, I'm your opponent." The girl speed up on her D-Board, right past the two Knights so that she was at the same speed as Rider. Moving closer she asked, "How are you holding on?"

"I'm just peachy." He humorously replied. "Why are you here, I'd never imagine you fighting the Knights of Hanoi up front."

"Rider-no. Yuta," she began slowly, "I'm not the bravest in the world. I can't talk to someone without hiding behind you, I can't speak unless it's a low volume, and I'm not as good a duelist as you. But, I know how much you want to stop the Knights of Hanoi. So I choose to stop hiding behind you and help you up front. I won't let you fight by yourself."

"Kas- I mean, Marine Mask, that's very brave of you." Rider complimented.

"Besides I'm wearing a mask. Nobody we know will recognize me," she added.

"That's the girl I know!" Rider quipped. "Now show them what you can do!"

"Of course!" Marine Mask moved away from her comrade and began her turn. "I activate the Field Spell, Marine Masquerade!" A card depicting many people in fancy clothing and masks dancing in an underwater ballroom made out of coral appeared next to the female duelist.

"When this card is activated, I can add one Marine Masquerader card from my Deck or Graveyard to my hand. I add the Continuous Spell, Marine Masquerader Aquatic Ballroom, and then activate it!"

"Next, because I control no monsters, I can Special Summon this monster from my hand. Come, Marine Masquerader – Spray Artiste!"

Materializing next to Marine Mask was a girl with vibrant yellow eyes and lovely iris blue hair tied into a ponytail, with an elegant mask of the same color around her eyes, resembling those worn at masquerade balls. She had on a cobalt blue sleeveless dress with a ruffled skirt, and stitched into the dress were small crystals that resembled a spray of water. Her lower half was a fish tail with power blue scales that ended in two fins. She giggled rather melodically as she spun around. A nearby indicator revealed her ATK to be with 600 ATK and a Level of 2.

"Cracking Dragon's effect!" The two Knights shouted. "Your monster loses ATK equal to its Level times 200, and you take the lost ATK as damage! Crack Fall!"

"Don't forget," the first one added, "All monsters you control lose 500 ATK for each Machine type monster I control!" More strong winds came from the two dragons, nearly blowing Marine Mask off of her D-Board as her Life Points fell to 3600 while decreasing Spray Artist's ATK to only 200, and then to zero because of Network Crash.

"The Continuous Spell, Marine Masquerader Aquatic Ballroom's effect! Each time I Special Summon a Marine Masquerader monster, I gain 500 Life Points!" She revealed as her card released a healing light, raising her Life Points to 4100. "I knew the dangers of Cracking Dragon's effect, so I first activated a card that will increase my Life Points, making sure that I would never fall under a certain amount!"

The two Knights growled in anger, that one card add managed to weaken their strategy. With a bit of a taunting smile, Marine Mask continued her turn.

"Next, I Normal Summon the Level 4 monster, Marine Masquerader – Tide Artiste!"

Jumping out of the Data Storm was a girl taller than Spray Artiste, with blue eyes and curly cerulean hair, an elegant masquerade ball mask of the same color surrounding her eyes. She wore a blue sleeveless dress with a ruffled skirt, and stitched into the fabric was a ring of sapphires above her waist. Her lower half was a fish tail with cerulean scales that ended in two fins. Her ATK was revealed to be 1800. The effects of the Cracking Dragon duo and Network Crash were activated again, as she was Level 4, Tide Artist lost 2100 ATK and Marine Mask's Life Points fell to 2500.

"Tide Artist effect activates! Once per turn, I can destroy 1 monster my opponent controls. But, as a price, Tide Artist cannot declare an attack the turn this effect is used!" Marine Mask explained before gesturing to the second Knight. "I choose to return the Cracking Dragon that belongs to you!"

Looking right at the mechanical beast, Tide Artiste held out her hands and fired a stream of rushing water, which quickly pushed the dragon back until it collided with a virtual building and destroyed it.

"Next," she continued, the mask she wore on her face beginning to glow. "Skill, Marine Masquerader Slow Dance, activate! When I control two or more Marine Masquerader monsters, I can negate the effects of one monster my opponent controls, as well as halve that monsters ATK! I negate the effects of the remaining Cracking Dragon!"

Marine Mask's two monsters held hands, and from the gesture a beam of light was fired at Cracking Dragon. The monster roared in pain as it began to slow down, its roar almost in slow motion. Its ATK went down to 1500. The monster's owner snarled while Rider smiled.

"Alright, now that Cracking Dragon's effects are sealed!" With Cracking Dragon weakened, it was possible for the two of them to win this duel.

"Because I control a Marine Masquerader monster, I can Special Summon Marine Masquerader – Wave Artiste by her own effect!"

Appearing in Marine Mask's final Main Monster Zone was a girl with green eyes and long teal hair, a masquerade ball mask of the same color surrounding her eyes. She was dressed in a white sleeveless dress with a ruffled skirt and a blue wave stitched in front. Her lower half was a blue fish tail that ended in two fins. Her 1200 ATK was decreased by 500 because of Network Crash, while Marine Mask's Life Points increased to 3000.

"Now, the effect of Wave Artist activates! By not attacking this turn, she can retun one Spell or Trap card my opponent controls to the hand. That card of course is the Continuous Spell Network Crash!"

Raising her hands upward, Wave Artiste hummed as a large wave of blue water appeared behind her. Within seconds the wave began to move forward and collapse on the representation of Hanoi's card. Both disappeared and a new card manifested in front of that Knight. With the card gone, Tide and Wave Artist regained 500 ATK.

 _A_ djusting her mask as if they were a pair of glasses, Marine Mask speed up on her D-Board. "Appear, the mysterious and beautiful circuit!" Mirroring what Rider did earlier, Marine Mask created a portal, flew through it with all three of her monsters following. "Arrowheads confirmed. The summoning conditions are at least two Marine Masquerader monsters! I set Marine Masqueraders, Tide Artiste, Wave Artiste and Spray Artiste in the three Link Markers!" The three monsters flew forward and filled up the three arrows along the bottom edge of the portal, a wave of energy released afterwards. "Circuit Combine! Mistress of the water, surge throughout this world and inspire new beauty! Link Shoukan! Please Appear, Link 3! Master Marine Masquerader – Mist Artiste!"

Spinning out of the portal came a beautiful woman with glittering purple eyes and tri-colored sea blue, black and white hair tied into rows of dreadlocks. Around her eyes was an elegant ball mask covered in shimmering sapphires. She wore a sea blue and white waist coat over a bright blue dress with sea green trim. Her lower half was an ocean blue colored fish tail that ended in a pair of fins. Around her neck was a necklace composed of a large pearl attached to a silver chain. On her wrists were bracelets made out of purple and sapphire blue bands of coral. Hanging from her ears were a pair of sapphire and pearl earrings. Humming a beautiful melody, Mist Artiste jumped upward for all to see her beauty. She posed next to Marine Mask's D-Board, facing off the pursuing Knights while an indicator showed an ATK of 2400. Because she had performed another Special Summon of a Marine Masquerader monster, Marine Masquerader Aquatic Ballroom brought Marine Mask's Life Points to 3500.

"Marine Masquerade's effect activates! Since I just Link Summoned a Marine Masquerader Link Monster, I Special Summon a Water monster from my Graveyard to the summoned monster's Link Point! I Special Summon Tide Artist to the bottom Link Point of Mist Artiste!"

A geyser of water erupted from the Data Storm, and from it Tide Artiste reappeared, positioned a little behind Mist Artiste, which caused Marine Mask's Life Points to go up to 4000. She smiled and waved towards Storm Rider, who knew exactly what to do.

"The Field Spell, Evolink Network's effect, activates! Each time a monster is summoned to the Link Point of a Link Monster, this card gains one Evolink Counter placed on it!" The card of Evolink Network reappeared, a glowing number '1' appearing in front of the artwork. Rider smirked as he predicted what would come next.

"Now," Marine Mask said, taking the final card in her hand. "I activate Marine Masquerader Current, and with it I Special Summon Wave Artiste back from my Graveyard and place her right next to Tide Artiste, otherwise known as Mist Artiste's bottom left Link Point!"

Wave Artiste reappeared, jumping up from the Data Storm and just as Marine Mask said, she landed adjacent to Mist Artiste. As another monster was summoned to a Link Point, Evolink Network gained a second Evolink Counter, and because another Marine Masquerader was Special Summoned Marine Masquerader Aquatic Ballroom gave its owner another 500 Life Points.

"Reappear, the mysterious and beautiful circuit!" Marine Mask declared as she prepared another Link Summon! "The Summoning conditions are at least one Effect Monster! I set Tide Artiste and Wave Artiste in the two Link Markers! Circuit Combine! Link Shoukan! Please Appear, Link 2! Master Marine Masquerader – Riptide Artiste!"

Ascending from the Data Storm, Marine Mask's new monster leapt into the sky, leaving droplets of water in her wake. Riptide Artiste had a pair of rosy pink eyes and dual colored navy and sky blue hair that was tied up in a bun with a long pony tail going down to her mid back. Around her eyes was an elegant green ball mask covered in droplets of water. She wore a light green dress with a ruffled skirt and electric blue trim under a sea blue waistcoat. Her lower half was a mint green fish tail that ended in a pair of fins. On her ears were a pair of sapphire and pearl earrings, and on each hand's ring finger was a gold ring with a piece of crystal embedded in it. The mermaid-like monster landed in the zone where Wave Artiste once stood and curtsied as a virtual indicator showed an ATK of 2000. The effects of Aquatic Ballroom and Evolink Network activated once again, bringing Marine Mask's Life Points to 5000 and placing a third counter on Evolink Network.

"I'm not done yet! Marine Masquerade's effect applies every time a Marine Masquerader is Link Summoned! So come back, Spray Artiste!" Marine Mask declared as the first monster she summoned this duel appeared to the right of Riptide Artiste and behind Mist Artiste. With another Marine Masquerader Special Summoned, and the a Link Monster's Link Point, Aquatic Ballroom increased Marine Mask's Life Points to a high 5500 while the number of counters on Evolink Network changed to 4.

"The other effect of Marine Masquerade, all Marine Masquerader Link Monsters gain 300 ATK for each monster Mutual Linked to itself. Because my two monsters are Mutual linked to each other, they both gain 300 ATK each!"

Both of the female duelist's Link Monsters laughed jovially as they glowed with a blue aura, their ATKs rising to 2300 and 2700 respectively.

Marine Mask turned to her Master Marine Masquerader – Mist Artiste. "Any monster linked to Mist Artiste cannot attack, but there comes a benefit to this. For every monster she's Mutual Linked with, Mist Artiste gains an additional attack. Though that's only one, it's still more than enough to finish off the one of you with no monsters!" She shouted, pointing towards said opponent.

The Knight gasped in shock, he had nothing to protect himself. "Mist Artiste attacks you directly twice!" Marine Mask commanded. Holding the palms of her hands out in front of her, Mist Artiste fired twin jets of water that flew through the air and knocked her foe of his D-Board and dropped his Life Points to an absolute zero.

The remaining Knight snarled. This had not been part of their plan. "That little…"

"Turn End." Marine Mask looked over at Rider, who was giving her a small smile. "Now, finish him off."

Rider closed his eyes as he placed his hand on his deck. " _Alright, I have only 600 Life Points and two cards in my hand. Unless I draw the card I need, it opens up the chance for the Knight to turn things around and beat me and Kasumi. I have to win, or else…"_ he said internally as the silhouette of a small child appeared in his mind. _"_ Shuhei… It was my fault for what happened to you. I won't let anything like that happen again. My Turn!" He shouted as he drew the top card of his Deck, the lines on his outfit glowing. Turning over the card he smiled greatly at what it was. _"Yes, this'll do!"_

"Appear, the circuit that transcends evolution," he declared as he began the Link Summoning process once again. "The summoning conditions are two monsters! I set the two Dragonoid Tokens in the two Link Markers!" The two Tokens summoned by the effect of Dragonoid Generator filled up the top and bottom arrows of the portal as it released an energy wave. "Circuit Combine! Paladin amongst those who live in the digital realm, rise up your arms and defend those who dare attack the innocent! Link Shoukan! Transcend Evolution, Link 2! Evolink Allo!

Smashing through the portal was a tall, slim yet muscular humanoid figure. He wore a black body suit with golden circuitry patterns running across. On his chest was an aqua blue plate of armor with purple tribal-like markings. Covering his limbs were pieces of cyan armor, and on his head was a blue crested helmet that resembled the head of an Allosaurus, a black visor covering his eyes with blue tribal markings covering his face, once of which on his chin that glowed through the helmet's 'lower jaw'. Placed on his lower back was a large navy blue tail with small speckles of silver scales. In his right hand he held a large sword, while he carried a round shield in his other hand. Pointing his blade towards the Knight of Hanoi, he glared daggers at the man who dared attack his master, the indicator next to him revealing an ATK of 2000, which was increased further by Evolink Network.

Taking the card he drew before he placed it on the blade of his Duel Disk. "Now I Normal summon the monster, Evolink Stego!"

Appearing behind Allo was a rotund person wearing a black body suit with blue circuit patterns and yellow armor plates on his chest, shoulders, elbows and knees, with matching fingerless gloves and boots. Running down his back were two rows of five diamond shaped yellow plates. Atop his head was a helmet that resembled a Stegosaurus' head. Attached to his lower back was a large tail with four sharp spikes around the end. An indicator appeared next to him and displayed an ATK stat of 1600. With another monster summoned at a Link Point, Evolink Network grew to 5 counters.

Holding his hand out, Rider shouted "Once again, appear! The circuit that transcends evolution!" Entering the Link portal with both his monsters in tow, Rider continued to perform the Link Summon. "Arrowheads confirmed! The summoning conditions are two or more Effect Monsters! I set Link 2 Evolink Allo and Evolink Stego in the three Link Markers!" Allo became the two on the bottom corners while Stego filled up the one on the bottom, causing the portal to release its energy. "Circuit Combine! The new wind that flows throughout this world, give strength to the tail that connects the past and future! Link Shoukan! Appear, Link 3! Tri-Tail Link Dragon!"

Flapping its wings, Rider's dragon flew out from the portal and soared into the virtual skies. It had the body of a 'traditional' western style dragon, four legs and two wings. Most of the dragon was covered up in large pieces of metal, the only exceptions were its neck, underside and the membranes of the wings. The revealed 'skin' of the dragon was primarily navy blue with lighter blue lines running horizontally. On each limb was a set of four dark blue claws that curled up against the palms of the dragon. On the dragon's head were two large bull horns that faced forward, with a smaller horn placed on the snout. Placed on the 'elbow' of the wings were three small spikes that resembled claws. The main characteristic of the dragon was that its tail split into three separate whip-like tails, each tipped with a blue arrowhead. Tri-Tail flew in a loop before soaring above Rider's D-Board at matching speed. Tri-Tail roared a powerful shout, stronger than that of Tyannus', and destroyed the windows of EVERY building in Link VRAINS as an indicator appeared next to it, revealing 2500 ATK.

At the advent of Rider's Ace Monster, the original Knight began to quake in fear. "W-What is that monster? That's not a Cyberse!"

"Oh I assure you that Tri-Tail is much more than a 'not Cyberse." Rider smirked as the lines on his suit once again began glowing. "Skill Activate, Evolution Link! When I Summon a Link Monster, I can Special Summon monsters from my Graveyard, up to the number of monsters used as Link Material in its Link Summon! Revive, Evolink Tyrannus! Evolink Allo!"

Both of Riders previously summoned Link Monsters came back to the field. Allo was placed right behind Tri-Tail, while Tyrannus appeared adjacent to Tri-Tail. The stat boosting effect of Evolink Network activated, giving both monsters 300 additional ATK.

"Tyrannus' effect activates! When he is summoned to a Link monster's Link Point, he gains 400 ATK, and I make your Cracking Dragon lose 800 ATK. In addition, Tri-Tail and all monsters linked to him gain 500 ATK for all monsters that are linked to Tri-Tail. Meaning both Tri-Tail and Allo gain 1000 ATK while Tyrannus gains 1400!"

The three monsters roared in perfect sync as they glowed with power, Tri-Tail's ATK becoming 3500, Allo's becoming 3000 and Tyrannus' becoming 4000. Pointing his axe towards the weakened Cracking Dragon, Tyrannus fired a bolt of red electricity that shocked and hurt the already drained monster, decreasing its ATK to a mere 700.

"Don't forget, because two monsters were summoned to a Link Point, Evolink Network gains an extra two counters. With that in mind, the Quick-Play Spell, Evolink Adaptation – Titanium Wings activates!" The card that Rider had added to his hand during his first turn flipped face up, aiming its activation light directly at Tri-Tail. "This card gives one Link monster I control an additional 1000 ATK. And then, I activate the other effect of Evolink Network! By removing any number of Evolink Counters from this card, I can give one monster I control 300 ATK for each one. I remove all seven Evolink Counters to give Tri-Tail Link Dragon 2100 more ATK!"

Tri-Tail roared once more, enveloped in a glowing light. Between the various stat boosting effects, the dragon's ATK had risen to a massive 6600 ATK!

"I'm giving you one chance!" Rider said as he turned his attention towards his about to defeated foe. "Tell me the identities of the other Knights of Hanoi, and I'll let you off easy."

"Never! I'd rather be humiliated then betray Revolver-sama!" The Knight shouted. "Who made you the one to go around and fight against us anyway!?"

"I'll tell you what! It's because you have no care for any form of life. You destroy the lives of people inside Link VRAINS and you so self-righteously claim that you're the heroes! Real heroes don't hurt the innocent for their own amusement of goals! Ever since the incident from five years ago, you have been hurting anyone who comes into Link VRAINS. A lot of people have become unconscious in the real world due to your machinations, including…." He paused, a single tear falling from his eye, "Including someone I let get hurt. I swore on that day to never let any living thing, in the real or virtual world be hurt by people like you. Even if I fall, I will give my all to help anyone and everyone!"

"What is he going on about?" The Knight repeated in confusion.

"Battle! Tri-Tail Link Dragon attack his Cracking Dragon and end this duel! Storm Tempest Spear!" On command, Rider's dragon flew up above the Knight's monster and roared directly at it. Its signature three tails began to braid together, forming a single tail tipped with a three-dimensional pyramid. Whipping the now unified tail around, Tri-Tail proceeded to smack it against Cracking Dragon, knocking it apart piece by piece before thrusting the tip of its tail directly into the monster's chest, destroying it entirely in a massive explosion.

"Ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh!" Screaming at the top of his lungs, the Knight fell of his board and landed somewhere on the ground. With the duel over, Both of Storm Rider and Marine Mask's monsters disappeared, a pair of 'WIN' signs appearing next to both duelists.

Concerned for her friend, Marine Mask pulled up next to him. She looked at his face and saw that it looked like he was going to start crying. "Are you alright?" She asked.

"I'm fine." He answered, "Let's just head back to the real world."

…..

"Well, this was certainly an interesting turn of events." Revolver said, having watched the entire duel. "It seems we have two thorns in our side we must remove."

…..

The next day, Storm Rider and Marine Mask were the only things people could talk about. People were asking questions about their identities, why they were fighting against the Knights of Hanoi, as well as a few fanboys drooling over Marine Mask. They were discussed on talk shows, newspapers and forum discussions all over Den City.

Yuta and Kasumi were having lunch while they checked on the Link VRAINS forum for comments about them. "Oh here's one," Kasumi said before beginning to read it. "I hear Sol Technologies is declaring them as a pair of vigilantes and a threat to network security."

"Network security?" Yuta parroted. "We just saved a lot of people and proved on live television that the Knights of Hanoi aren't all that invincible. Why would they say we were the enemy?"

"Well-" Kasumi didn't know why herself. SOL Technologies' leaders were mysterious and no one knew who they were. "My guess is that they might have a connection to the incident from five years ago."

"You think the heads of SOL Tech are working with the Hanoi?" Asked Yuta, "Because if they are then that means Hanoi might really not be all that evil after all."

"It's a possibility. It could be that this 'Revolver' mentioned by the one we defeated yesterday is actually one of SOL Tech's leaders. Anything is possible really." The bespectacled girl replied, much to her friends concern. Sensing his discomfort, she attempted to cheer him up. "Hey," she said gently, "I'm sure that Shuhei would be very proud of his big brother."

"Yeah." Yuta replied with little emotion. "I just wish he could tell me. If I hadn't just ditched him then… Well, you know."

Looking down, Kasumi could see that Yuta was looking at a card in his hand. She couldn't see what card it was, but if she had to guess it was one that belonged to Shuhei. "Well, how about I join you for your Duel Club meeting this afternoon?"

"Seriously?" Yuta asked as he looked at her with a stunned expression. "You actually want to join a club? You do know you have to interact with people?"

"Well one of the best ways to support you friends is to be with them. In this case it's joining you to your afterschool activity. Even though I won't be able to talk to others, the least I could do is help you feel better by attempting to socialize with people."

"I'll take it." Yuta smiled. He felt good knowing that even though she wasn't good with most people, Kasumi would be there to support him. "So, let's talk about that Marine Mask girl. What do you think about her," he jokingly asked.

"Well I think her account name is very fitting. Much more accurate than Storm Rider's."

"Hey!"

* * *

Cards in this chapter:

**Yuta/Storm Rider's cards**

Evolink Ornithom

1300 ATK/ 900 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 3/ Cyberse/ Effect

If you control no monsters: You can Special Summon this card (from your hand); and if you do, you can add 1 "Evolink" card from your Deck to your hand.

Evolink Raptor

1900 ATK/ 1300 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Cyberse/ Effect

When this card is Normal Summoned, and each time this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle: You can add 1 "Evolink Adaptation" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck or GY to your hand.

Evolink Pterordax

1400 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ LIGHT/ Cyberse/ Effect

If you control an "Evolink" monster: You can Special Summon this card (from your hand); and if you do, you can add 1 "Evolink Adaptation" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck or GY to your hand.

Evolink Stego

1600 ATK/ 1800 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Cyberse/ Effect

Once per turn: You can discard 1 card from your hand; Add 1 "Evolink" monster from your Deck or GY to your hand.

Tri-Tail Link Dragon

2500 ATK/ LINK - 3/ LIGHT/ Link Arrows: Bottom Left, Bottom, Bottom Right/ Dragon/ Link/ Effect

2+ Effect Monsters

If this card is Link Summoned: You can target 1 Level 5 or higher monster in your GY; Special Summon it to your zone this card points to. Gains 500 ATK for each monster this card points to, also monsters it points to gain 500 ATK for each of those monsters. While this card points to 2 or more monsters, it cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects, also those monsters cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects.

Evolink Tyrannus

2600 ATK/ LINK - 3/ LIGHT/ Link Arrows: Top Left, Bottom, Top Right/ Cyberse/ Link/ Effect

2+ "Evolink" Monsters

If this card is Special Summoned to a zone a Link Monster points to, and each time a monster is summoned to a zone this card points to: You can make this card gain 400 ATK; and if you do, target 1 monster your opponent controls, it loses 800 ATK. This card can attack all monsters your opponent controls that it points to, once each.

Evolink Allo

2000 ATK/ LINK - 2/ LIGHT/ Link Arrows: Top, Bottom/ Cyberse/ Link/ Effect

2 Monsters

 _Effects unrevealed_

Evolink Network

Field Spell

When this card is activated: You can add 1 "Evolink" card from your Deck or GY to your hand. "Evolink" monsters you control gain 300 ATK. Each time a monster is Normal or Special Summoned to a zone a Link Monster points to: Place 1 Evolink Counter on this card. If this card would be destroyed: You can remove 1 Evolink Counter instead. Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can remove any number of Evolink Counters from this card; increase the ATK of 1 monster you control by the number of counters removed x300. If this card leaves the field: You can target "Evolink" cards in your GY, up to the number of Evolink Counters this card had on the field; shuffle them into your Deck.

Evolink Adaptation – Titanium Wings

Quick-Play Spell

Target 1 Link Monster you control: That target gains 1000 ATK. You can banish this card in your GY: add 1 "Evolink" card from your GY to your hand.

Evolink Adaptation – Data Camo

Counter Trap

Target 1 "Evolink" monster you control: Your opponent cannot target that monster for attacks or with card effects until the End Phase.

**Kasumi/ Marine Mask's Cards**

Marine Masquerader – Spray Artiste

600 ATK/ 400 DEF/ WATER/ Level 2/ Sea Serpent/ Effect

If you control no monsters: You can Special Summon this card (from your hand). You can only Special Summon "Marine Masquerader – Spray Artiste" once per turn this way. Once per turn: You can Set 1 "Marine Masquerader" Trap card from your Deck. This card cannot declare an attack the turn you activate this effect.

Marine Masquerader – Tide Artiste

1800 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ WATER/ Level 4/ Sea Serpent/ Effect

When this card is Normal Summoned: You can add 1 "Marine Masquerader" monster from your Deck to your hand. Once per turn: You can destroy 1 monster your opponent controls. This card cannot declare an attack the turn you activate this effect.

Marine Masquerader – Wave Artiste

1200 ATK/ 1800 DEF/ WATER/ Level 4/ Sea Serpent/ Effect

If you control a "Marine Masquerader" monster: You can Special Summon this card (from your hand). You cannot Special Summon monsters the turn you activate this effect, except "Marine Masquerader" monsters. Once per turn: You can return 1 Spell/Trap card your opponent controls to the hand. This card cannot declare an attack the turn you activate this effect.

Master Marine Masquerader – Mist Artiste

2400 ATK/ LINK - 3/ WATER/ Link Arrows: Bottom Left, Bottom, Bottom Right/ Sea Serpent/ Link/ Effect

2+ "Marine Masquerader" monsters

Monsters this card points to cannot declare an attack. This card can make an additional attack during each of your Battle Phases, up to the number of monsters co-linked with this card. If an opponent's monster declares an attack: You can Tribute 1 monster this card points to; negate that attack.

Master Marine Masquerader – Riptide Artiste

2000 ATK/ LINK - 2/ WATER/ Link Arrows: Top Right, Right

1+ "Marine Masquerader" monsters

"Marine Masquerader" monsters you control inflict piercing battle damage. Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can make all "Marine Masquerader" monsters this card points to gain 1000 ATK, until the end of this turn. If this card is sent from the field to the GY: You can add 1 "Marine Masquerade" card from your GY to your hand.

Marine Masquerade

Field Spell

When this card is activated: You can add 1 "Marine Masquerader" card from your Deck or GY to your hand. Cannot be destroyed while you control co-linked "Marine Masquerader" monsters. "Marine Masquerader" Link Monsters you control gain ATK equal to the number of monsters co-linked to themselves X300. Each time you Link Summon a "Marine Masquerader" monster: You can Special Summon 1 WATER monster from your GY to your Zone that Link Monster points to.

Marine Masquerader Aquatic Ballroom

Continuous Spell

Each time you Special Summon a "Marine Masquerader" monster: Gain 500 LP. Up to twice per turn (Quick Effect): You can target 2 "Marine Masquerader" monsters you control (in your Main or Extra Monster Zone); Switch the locations of those targets.

Marine Masquerader Current

Normal Spell

Special Summon 1 "Marine Masquerader" monster from your hand or GY.

**Knights of Hanoi's Cards**

Network Crash

Continuous Spell

All monsters your opponent controls ATK equal to the number of Machine-Type monsters you control X500. While you control 2 or more Machine-Type monsters: Negate the effects of all Cyberse-Type monsters on the field.

Net Virus Infection

Equip Spell

Equip only to a Machine-Type monster you control. If the equipped monster destroys an opponent's monster by battle: Inflict damage to your opponent equal to half the destroyed monster's original ATK.

* * *

 **This chapter would have been up a little earlier, I just got caught up watching season 3 of Voltron Legendary Defender on Netflix. Good show, I recommend.**

 **First off all, a massive thank you to the amazing Donjusticia for his assistance in creating Yuta and Kasumi's decks. Before I started writing this story, I had some trouble creating their decks, as well as one other counterparts, I had the base ideas I just couldn't think of their playstyle. But with the assistance of Donny, I managed to work out the cards.**

 **Okay I told him the base ideas and he designed most of the cards they used in chapter except Yuta's Field Spell, his Link 2 monster and the Quick-Play Spell he used, but I consider all three archetypes developed to be a joint effort. I think they really fit.**

 **How do you guys like our Link duo. I hope I delivered on both their personalities. Original it was going to be just a one-on-one between Yuta and the first Knight, but after reading Epsilon Tarantula's review (I'll get to that in a minute) I decided to extend it by having the duelist intruded. Personally I thought it was a good move because instead of just telling you guys about Kasumi's personality, I was showcasing her and what she wants to improve about herself. As for Yuta, I partially based his personality on the protagonist of a Digimon show. I forget which one but I know it was recent. I also threw a bit of Judai into his character in his friendly persona and added some Kaiba character traits with the younger brother. Anyways I hope you liked these characters because you won't be seeing them again for a while. The remaining two on the other hand, you're going to see quite a bit. Rejoice Donjustica that means your favorite one.**

 **So reviews;**

 **Shimmering-Sky: Thank you.**

 **thetiger39: Please don't mention what happened with Yuzu or else I will erupt. Believe me, I just hope Aoi does a better job, especially because I've never been this interested in a female character this early. Yuzu and the other Bracelet Girls, scratch that, all eight counterparts disappointed me in some way, and that's said because all eight of them are some of my all-time favorite characters in a Yu-Gi-Oh show.**

 **Epsilon Tarantula: (Reads first sentence) yeah….. (Sees the rest) ahh! Well that was harsh, but I can deal with criticisms. Your observation on Yuji's deck, not what I was going for. I actually based the Deck on RPG games, why do you think the Spells were called "Fantasy Quest". Not saying your observation was bad, it was a good coincidence, just not what I had intended. Also I hope that you enjoyed Kasumi more than you did Nova.**

 **AlissonJohns: Don't worry it'll be explained in a few chapters once our Arc V characters meet one of the remaining counterparts. "Life is Beautiful," that reminds me of a song. I'm not going to sing it, it just brings something to mind.**

 **Elbartoo4000: Well you were right about the three tailed dragon. I got the idea for the tails to braid into one large one from a dragon in the How to Train your Dragon franchise. Once Donny sent over Tri-Tail I realized I could work that in. As for the remaining dragon, well…. let's just say you aren't far off. All I'll say is that the stuff involving the last dimension in this story will probably be the more controversial thing about this story.**

 **Donjustica-sempai: Thank you, glad you liked my Ritual Counterparts. And thinking about it, I actually think that a quote-unquote Duel Monsters dimension was in Arc V. The Fusion Dimension is based off of GX, and what is GX a sequel of? Yeah it's a bit of a stretch but technically it works! And though I will not reveal the SoR Ritual Dragon, I will tell you guys that he was not wrong, our Ritual Dragons did have a resemblance!**

 **Alright I'm going to end here. Next time we return to the main plot and we meet up with an old fiend.**

 **Thank you and see you next time.**


	4. Negative

**Welcome back everyone! I hope that everyone who went on a little Eclipse Vacation recently had a wonderful time and that this chapter is good. While I won't give massive spoilers for this chapter, I will say this:**

 **Prepare the 5Ds music cause you're about to get a blast from the past!**

 **Oh and credits to Donjusticia for proofreading.**

 **Arc v, not mine.**

* * *

It was night in the Synchro Dimension. There wasn't a star in the sky, and the moon was absent as well. Despite this, the lighting of office buildings and billboards kept the city well lit. It wasn't a silent night either. The siren from a Security Officer's D-Wheel echoed in the streets, a chase was in pursuit, another person dueling against him.

 **Security Officer:**

 **1800 LP**

 **Controls Goyo Guardian**

 **No cards in Hand**

 **Goyo Guardian (Attack Position): 2800 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 6/ Warrior/ Synchro/ Effect**

 **Vs.**

 **Mysterious D-Wheeler**

 **850 LP**

 **Controls Two Monsters**

 **No cards in Hand**

 **Monster 1 (Attack Position): 1600 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Beast/ Effect**

 **Monster 2 (Attack Position): 1800 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Fiend/ Effect**

The officer noticed something…odd, about the rider's D-Wheel. It was bulkier than most, and had strange orange markings on the side. Not only that, but the rider was, insane, for lack of a better term. Throughout the duel, he had been laughing a madman's gleeful cackles. The officer was disturbed by the sadistic nature his opponent displayed.

"I end my turn," the officer said with concern as the D-Wheel in front of him slowed down so that they were right next to each other. He looked at the face of the pursued and saw an unimpressed gaze staring directly back at him.

"That's the best you can do?" he questioned, scoffing at his opponent. "I'm still not satisfied. It really is amazing how unskilled the people of this dimension are." The mysterious D-Wheeler sped up again, leaving his foe trailing behind.

The Security member could only look on as the mysterious D-Wheeler drew his card and began to laugh psychotically once again. "Well, looks like we're 'bout to get to my favorite part of the duel, and that is, CRUSHING YOU!"

"I tribute my Infernity Beast and Infernity Daemon. With this, I Tribute Summon the monster Infernity Assassin!" Replacing the two monsters on the field was a tall humanoid figure with wild black hair, covered up by orange and black clothing that resembled a poncho. His pale grey skin looked dry and wrinkled, as if the monster had wandered in the sun for too long. He carried a thin curved dagger in one hand, and in the other was a small black pistol. The monster chuckled darkly as he pointed the weapon towards the pursuing officer.

 **Infernity Assassin: 1000 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 10/ Warrior/ Dark Tuner/ Effect**

"But why stop there! Infernity Assassin no kouka! When this card is summoned while I have no cards in my hand, I can draw a card! If that card is an Infernity monster, I can Special Summon it. If not then it's sent to the Graveyard," the strange rider explained. He placed his hand on top of his Deck and drew. Looking at his opponent with a smirk, he flipped over the card to reveal it was a monster.

"Well what do you know," he said with a psychotic giggle. "It's a monster, and with Infernity Assassin's effect I Special Summon it! Come, Infernity Dwarf!"

Materializing next to Infernity Assassin was a small man with a black beard and gray skin. In his hand he held a massive double headed axe coated in fire.

 **Infernity Dwarf (Attack Position): 800 ATK/ 500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 2/ Warrior/ Effect**

The officer looked down at his duel disk and saw that the total Levels of the monsters on his opponent's field were a total of twelve. "He could Synchro Summon, but he doesn't have a Tuner," he whispered, turning his attention towards Assassin. "And what does that monster have to do with anything?"

"HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAH!" The mysterious D-Wheeler cackled as the sky above them began to darken and the shadows around them began to grow thicker and blacker. "IT'S TIME! IT'S FINALLY TIME! I use Level Two Infernity Dwarf and with Level Ten Dark Tuner Infernity Assassin, perform Dark Tuning!"

….

"Ow!" Startled by the surprise, Yuya jumped up from his sleep and realized what had happened. "Really En, you still like doing that," he said as he picked up the Corgi, who had woken him up by falling on his face.

 _"This is why I never had pets,"_ Yuto remarked as Yugo and Yuri awoke.

 _"You're concerned about them falling on your face and waking you up,"_ Yuri asked with a raised brow.

 _"Well that and all the other things that come with taking care of an animal."_

 _"He means cleaning up the-"_

 _"I know what he meant Yugo."_

Yuya quickly got dressed and slid down to the first floor to see both of his parents. Yusho was sitting at the table reading a newspaper while Yoko was cooking breakfast. "Dad you're here," a happily surprised Yuya said.

After the end of the Dimensional War, Akaba Leo had stepped down as the Headmaster of Academia in favor of repairing the family he had left in the Pendulum Dimension. When he did, he had asked Yusho to replace him, stating that if anyone could help the students learn the truth about dueling, it would be Yusho. After a lot of encouragement from friends and family, Yusho accepted the position. It didn't mean he was never around though, he did manage to find time to just be with his family, rare as it might be.

"The students didn't have to attend class today and the staff said they would handle everything, so they let me take the day off," Yusho explained as Yoko placed a plate of pancakes in front of her son and husband.

"Though this does mean breakfast will be smaller today. I guess I've been so used to only cooking for two that I've forgotten how to cook for three," Yuya's mom playfully said, giving her husband a wink.

"Well it doesn't matter darling, if you cooked it then it's bound to be delicious."

"Oh you," Yoko blushed.

Yuri pretended to gag at the display of affection. _"Okay I'm going to throw up. Anybody have any doggy bags?"_

Fortunately for Yuri, the phone began to ring. "I've got it," Yusho said as he walked up towards the house phone.

"So Yuya, any plans for today," Yoko asked as Yuya began munching down on pancakes.

"Well, I was supposed to help Gongenzaka with an exhibition duel at his family's dojo, then head over to the Xyz Dimension to help Dennis teach, and then I have a picnic date with Yuzu over by the park," Yuya answered, somewhat muffled by the food in his mouth.

"Good, good" His mother replied, a saddened expression stretching across her face.

"Is there something wrong mom?"

"Well, it's just, how would you feel about having a younger sibling?"

Yuya spat out the orange juice he was drinking and looked at his mother with a surprised expression. "What!? Wait, does that mean-"

"Oh no, not yet." Yoko looked over at her husband who was still on the phone. "It's just, you're sixteen and almost ready to leave the nest. And with your father constantly off at Academia, I'm starting to think about how lonely it'll be around the house. Well apart from the pets that'll probably fill up the house with, but I'll miss having regular, human contact."

"That uh, it feels like you should talk to Dad about that," the boy said wiping the orange juice off his lip. Yusho meanwhile put the phone down and went back to his family with a heard to read expression.

"What's wrong honey?"

"That was Akaba Reiji, he said there was an emergency and that Yuya needed to head over to LDS right away."

Yuya was surprised at this, for two reasons. The first was that he and Reiji hadn't spoken in a while, not since after their last duel two years ago, and that something was so bad that the eighteen year old CEO would call upon him for assistance. "Reiji did?"

"Yes. He also said that a helicopter to pick you up should be arriving soon," Yusho added.

"How about right now," Yoko said peeking behind the drapes of a window. Yuya got up and saw that his mother was telling the truth, and that he could also see Yuzu sitting inside the copter.

"Yup that's Reiji for you. I'll be back as soon as I can," Yuya said as he grabbed he shoes, bolted towards to front door and paused before closing it, "Oh and Mom, remember to talk to Dad about that thing."

"Talk to me about what," Yusho asked as he took a sip of coffee.

"About how would you feel about having another kid?" Yusho promptly stopped drinking his coffee and froze up.

….

The helicopter took Yuya and Yuzu straight to LDS, and the pilot escorted them to Reiji's office. The doors opened up and the two saw Reiji sitting behind his desk, the other members of the Lancers standing around the room as well. It was then Yuya realized that, if Reiji had called on all of the Lancers, then the situation must be worse than he thought.

"Welcome Sakaki Yuya, Hiragi Yuzu. I'm glad you came as quickly as you could," Reiji said as he stood up from his seat.

"Well, to be fair, Serena partially had a hand in that," Yuzu replied with a somewhat awkward face.

"What does that mean," asked Gongenzaka.

"Let's just say waking her up before a certain time is like stealing candy from Sora, something you never want to do," the pinkette answered back.

"That bad huh," Sora questioned.

Sawatari flipped his hair. "Can't say I blame her. I know how important it is for a person to get their beauty rest. And by that I'm referring to the fact someone decided to interrupt mine. Cough cough-Reiji-cough cough."

Reiji adjusted his glasses. "Well I'm sorry for that, but this is something important. Yesterday an accident occurred in the Synchro Dimension that burned down an entire building."

"That's the emergency you brought us all in for? Doesn't seem that bad," a displeased Sora said as he licked a lollipop.

"I figured there would be some doubts, which is why I brought in evidence," an unfazed Reiji said. He clapped his hands and the lights in the room went out. Before anyone else could react, an image depicting a quartet of bar graphs labeled Synchro, Fusion, Pendulum and Xyz appeared behind the group. Each bar was colored the color of the respective summoning method, except for one bar on the Synchro Chart which was colored gray.

"What you are seeing now are energy readings that have been detected across all four dimensions." Reiji explained calmly. "Our sensors are designed to pick up the energy that is released upon performing a summoning method. And if you would turn your attention towards the Synchro chart you would notice that there is an additional bar, unlike the rest."

"Yeah, what's up with that," asked Dennis. "And how does it relate to some big fire?"

"That is because around the time of the fire in the Synchro Dimension yesterday, a summoning method was performed which released a surplus amount of negative energy," the silver haired CEO answered, which greatly surprised everyone else.

"Negative energy," a stunned Kurosaki parroted.

"Yes. I had some employees examine the energy released, and they discovered that, when inverted, the energy becomes the same as the energy released when Synchro Summoned."

"The same," Yuya questioned, looking over his shoulder to see his other selves listening in on the conversation. "Yugo, do you know anything about what might have caused that energy?"

 _"Heck no!"_ the synchro boy answered. _"I didn't even….."_ he paused, _"Well there might be one thing but, nah, there's no way that's actually real. Unless-"_

 _"Quit keeping us in suspense and just tell us,"_ Yuto demanded.

 _"It was a Dark Synchro Summon."_ Yugo said, which only confused the other boys.

"Dark Synchro?" said Yuzu, who was having the same conversation with her own counterparts.

 _"Yes,"_ Rin repeated. _"It's just an urban myth but, allegedly, Dark Synchro Summoning was used by a cult that had origins in the ancient Incan lore over five thousand years ago."_

 _"According to the tales, a group of evil spirits bound to the earth would choose certain people and bring them back to life,"_ Yugo explained. _"They would fight against another group of people chosen by some kind of giant dragon god and it's servants for the fate of the world."_

 _"That's fine and all, but what does that have to do with Dark Synchro Summoning?"_ Yuto asked.

 _"I was getting to that Serena,"_ an irate Rin said, not happy with being interrupted. _"The story says that the ones chosen by the evil spirits wielded a perverted form of Synchro Summoning, in which you subtracted the Level of a special type of Tuner from that of the non-Tuners…"_

 _"And that's what a Dark Synchro Summon is."_ Yugo finished, the others not sure what to believe.

"I assume that the two of you know something," said Reiji, who had noticed Yuya and Yuzu seemingly staring off into space. "Were you having a discussion with your other selves about the cause of the energy?"

"Yes." The two answered, proceeding to explain what their Synchro counterparts had told them about the idea of Dark Synchro Summoning.

"So…" Dennis trailed, unsure what to say. "Just to recap, you guys think that Reiji's scanners detecting some negative energy is because of an old folk tale in the Synchro Dimension about gods and zombies? Whew, that's a sentence I never thought I'd say."

"Yeah," Sawatari jeered. "That sounds absolutely nutcase! You guys think so too, right?"

"Well…." Sora began, not sure what to believe. "After having fought against people from other dimensions and a gigantic omnicidal maniac slash psychopathic man-child dragon god, I'll believe anything."

"I, the man Gongenzaka, believe that a wise next move would be to head into the Synchro Dimension," the steadfast duelist said.

"Yes I was getting to that," Reiji voiced, clearly irritated with how off topic everything was going. "We will head into the Synchro Dimension in order to investigate the cause of this anomaly. Yuya, Yuzu, Sawatari and myself will head to a hospital not far from the scene of the incident."

"Hospital," asked Yuzu. "Why would we be heading to a hospital?"

"So we can interview the person who was seen dueling right before the fire started," Reiji answered. "I have men already at the scene helping to investigate the fire. The rest of you will go around searching for any leads on what might have caused the fire."

Dennis pretended to get teary-eyed, earning the attention of everyone in the room. "Sorry, it just brings back so many memories. Oh those were crazy times, weren't they?"

 _"Does he have to be so dramatic?"_ Serena asked, tired of the entertainer's antics.

 _"Hey, I think it's funny."_ said Rin.

 _"Yuri was he always like this?"_ Yugo asked his Fusion self.

 _"How should I know?"_ the violet-haired boy replied somewhat uncomfortably. _"The only times I've interacted with him was, you know, when I was trying to kidnap Yuzu and the others."_

The others winced at the memory. It was obvious that Yuri never had any time to make friends back in Academia.

"So now that everything is ready," Reiji said, "Let us all head back into the Synchro Dimension."

…..

Within the Synchro Dimension, fire-trucks doused the remaining flames of the burnt building with gallons of water. Security officers as well as investigators from the Leo Corporation were scanning for survivors still trapped inside. The ground was covered in ruble and broken glass, blocked out by a blanket of ash.

From atop a nearby building, the D-Wheeler removed his helmet and looked down at the scene with an amused look. "Well that was messier than anticipated, but that was satisfying. It should definitely get her attention."

"I know it got my attention," came a voice from behind. The man turned around and saw a feminine figure in black robes walk towards him. He rolled his eyes, not in the mood to see her.

"What do you want," he rudely asked. "We both know that tracking her down is my job."

"And yet you choose to basically announce your presence to this entire city," the girl said back, not amused by his actions. "Cronus-sama told you to be quiet about this and how do you do that? By burning down a building. You're almost as bad as the other one."

The man rolled his eyes. So it was one building, big deal the City was large enough as it was without that one building. "Is this going somewhere because if I remember correctly Cronus assigned you a mission as well?"

"Of course, and that's why I'm here. The High Priest has decided to take you off the mission, and has given the job of hunting Mayu down to the Acolytes."

"What!" the man shouted, a flame of anger appearing in his eyes. "Why?"

"You just destroyed a building for fun. That proof enough," the woman sarcastically said. "But besides that, the High Priest has decided to begin his plan within a fortnight. He needs all of us ready for the attack."

"Hmph, does it matter?" The man placed his helmet back on and sat back on his D-Wheel. "The duelist of those pathetic dimensions won't satisfy me." Without saying another word, he revved up his D-Wheel and raced towards the end of the building and down to the streets below, leaving the woman alone.

"Don't bite off more than you can chew. Your fate may be crueler than you think, Kiryu Kyosuke."

…..

"Well look who decided to show their faces," Crow jokingly said, genuinely happy to see the Lancer at his doorstop. He opened the door up, allowing his guests to enter. The Lancer group stepped inside, with Kurosaki given his friend a fist bump.

Over the past two years, Crow's home had been renovated and improved. Now it had separate rooms for Crow, Shinji and the three children who they raised, a roof that now hosted solar panels for power, and an extra bathroom. Due to the divide between Commons and Tops being torn down, many homes in what once were the slums of the metropolis had turned into suburban areas. Money had also been distributed more evenly, allowing for the citizens more clothing and formal education. The once classist, barbaric society had moved on from its 'Duel to survive' ways, and was truly one.

"Mind the stuff on the couch. Tanner's birthday is next Thursday and we're planning a surprise party for him." Taking his word, the group moved over to dinner table, which was large enough for twelve people.

"Oh, if you need entertainment I'm free that day," Dennis said as he sat down.

"And as long as there's sweets, I can always come to a party," Sora added as he took a seat next to his fellow Fusion practitioner.

"I think we are all forgetting why we came here," Gongenzaka pointed out.

The two Fusion duelists chuckled lightly.

"Well aren't you just a ray of sunshine," Crow quipped. "So not to sound rude or anything, but why are you guys here."

"Akaba Reiji-dono has requested us to investigate the fire from last night," said Tsukikage, who was still standing.

"Yeah, that was all over the news," the orange haired duelist said grimly. "Word on the street is that it was started when a Riding Duel went out of control and one of the guys got thrown into a building. Though I do wonder how just one D-Wheel was capable of causing that big a fire."

"Because according to Akaba Reiji, it was no ordinary duel." Kurosaki said with a serious look in his eyes, "Around the time of the fire, one of the duelists performed a Synchro Summon that released a large amount of negative energy."

"A negative Synchro…." The Blackwing duelist said in shock.

…..

While the rest of the group spoke to Crow, Reiji's group went over to the Hospital where the witness was being held. Of course it was easier said than done, the entrance was packed with reporters. Correction, the entire building was surrounded by them.

"Yeesh! I knew there would be some reporters, but this is ridiculous!" Sawatari exclaimed, practically dry heaving. "This is a nightmare."

"Sawatari we're already inside." Yuya pointed out, Yuzu and himself sharing unamused looks. Thanks to Reiji's… persuasive talents, they were able to move past the crowd with ease.

"Oh yeah," the blonde said, just realizing this. "So come on, let's do this so I can get back to my beauty rest!" Without knowing which room to go to, Sawatari ran down the hallway to his left a crashing sound coming soon after. "HEY! That was a rental!"

…..

After Sawatari's little incident, the foursome spoke to the person at the main desk, who informed them to go to room 334. Arriving at the room, they opened the door to see Jack Atlas standing next to a bed with a person lying down on it. He was a tall man in his late forties with black hair and tan skin. His eyes were brown and he had a large scar on the left side of his face. A large number of bandages were wrapped around his chest, and his right arm was held in a sling. On a nearby stand was a Security Officer's helmet.

"Thank you for agreeing to meet us Jack." Reiji said as they entered, Yuya and Yuzu carrying Sawatari by his arms.

"I might not be King, but I still have a duty to the people of the City," Jack said before looking at Sawatari. "What happened to him?"

The Abyss Actor duelist attempted to answer, only to flail his arms around and say something incoherently, leaving Jack confused.

Yuzu spoke up. "He ran into a tray carrying needles filled with numbing agents. He won't move for at least three hours."

Sawatari said something else that no one understood, but from his tone it sounded like "I'm fine, I don't need any help."

"Frankly I've seen worse," the Security Officer said, sounding absolutely deadpan.

"Anway," Reiji spoke up, wishing to get back on topic. Thank you for agreeing to answer our questions Officer-"

"Ushio. Tetsu Ushio. I assume you've heard of me. I'm kind of a big deal around the City." Ushio said, sounding quiet smug.

No one had heard of him. " _You Security guys all look the same to me."_ Said Serena, Rin and Yuzu agreeing with her completely.

Before anyone else could say anything, a woman wearing a nurse's outfit entered the room. She wore trifocal glasses that covered her eyes, and her hair was black and pointed down in an arrow. Closing the door behind her she was unaware of the flabbergasted look on Jack's face.

"Alright, I've found my scoop. And before anyone else got in as well," the 'nurse' whispered happily.

"Carly!" Jack suddenly yelled, earning everyone's attention, especially Carly's.

"J-J-Jack!" She stuttered, looking absolutely stunned. "I didn't know you were going to be here."

"You know this chick?" Ushio asked.

"This Carly Nagisa." Jack said, gesturing towards the girl in question. "She's a reporter and," he paused, "my girlfriend."

"Girlfriend!" Yuya, Yuzu and a still blabbering Sawatari repeated in shock. "Black cyu jhy bog, khen did poo tace urselv off tha maket?" the blonde asked, everyone giving him absolutely confused looks as a result.

 _"Guys come on!"_ Yugo said as if it was the most obvious thing in the world. _"He said, 'Jack you sly dog, when did you get yourself off the market?'"_

 _"You understood that?"_ Asked Yuto.

 _"I've had an incident with a numbing needle before. Don't ask."_

"What are you doing Carly? Do you know how much trouble you'd get in if someone saw you wearing that?" Jack questioned.

"I'm sorry. My boss was all 'Carly you better get an interview with that Security Officer guy before anyone else or you're fired. And someone get me coffee in the next five seconds!'" She replied, briefly doing a male impersonation. "I didn't mean any harm. I just wanted to-…wait just a card flipping minute!" Carly stopped, turning towards Yuya.

The next thing Yuya knew, Carly was right in front of his face and asking him a large number of questions. "Sakaki Yuya, why are you here questioning this officer? Are you and the Lancers investigating the fire as well? Why did you decide to be a duelist in the first place?"

"Okay Already!" Reiji suddenly shouted, a rare move from him. Everyone stared at him as if he had grown a second head. The CEO quickly recomposed himself. "My apologies but we do have something important to discuss. Ms. Nagisa-"

"C-Carly." She interjected.

"Carly. You may stay for this conversation. However you cannot tell anyone about what you hear. This is to remain a confidential secret." Reiji told the reporter, who dejectedly sat down on a chair.

Feeling bad for the girl, Ruri gave Yuzu a few eye clues to go make sure she was okay. Taking the hint, the Pendulum girl leaned on the wall next to Carly and asked her a question. "So, how long have you and Jack been together?"

"We've only been dating a few weeks. No one else besides you guys now about it though." She answered, "We're trying to keep our relationship on the down-low. You know try to keep the press from bothering us all the time."

"But you're a reporter." Yuzu pointed out. It felt odd that Jack had decided to keep his relationship with her a secret from the paparazzi, and Carly being a reporter sort of made the situation even more ironic.

"I know, that's the funny part." The black haired girl added, before staring at her boyfriend with a dreamy expression. "You know what it's like to meet someone and just know that they're the one?"

Looking at Yuya with a similar expression, Yuzu replied "Yeah, I do."

 _"Okay something please happen before I barf from this mushy romance stuff."_ said Serena.

While the girls had their little chat, the others spoke to Ushio. "So, Ushio-san. What happened last night?" Yuya asked, curious to know the truth about the incident.

"Well," Ushio said, beginning to recall the events of the previous night. "I was doing my weekly ride around the city. You know, seeing if I could find any criminal activity, when all of a sudden, some punk rides right past me on a D-Wheel going over twice the speed limit. I caught up to him and told him to pull over. But when he slowed down, he rammed his D-Wheel right into mine!"

"Sounds like you had a rough night," Jack remarked.

"Oh if you thought that was rough, you won't believe this. So I challenged the guy to a duel, and let me tell you that guy was no push over. SO…I knocked him down to his last thousand or so Life Points, when all of a sudden he summons this insane monster and finishes me off! Next thing I knew, there was a fire, smoke, a lot of voices, and then I fell unconscious. When I woke up, I was in here."

"Interesting," Carly noted, secretly writing down the whole story on her arm. "And exactly what monster did he summon?"

"Honestly," Ushio began, sounding as if he didn't fully believe himself, "I don't think you would believe me if I told you what it was."

"Was it," Reiji asked, "A Dark Synchro Monster?"

The three natives of the Synchro Dimension stood in shock at Reiji's guess. "Y-yes! He subtracted the Levels of his Tuner and summoned a monster with a negative Level. That monster, oh that monster," Ushio began to ramble, eyes zig-zagging from side to side, his whole body shaking. "It was like looking into the eyes of Death himself. That duelist, his power, it was insane! He said he could destroy the world if he wanted to, and that's exactly what he would do!"

…..

"So, you guys really think it could be a Dark Synchro?" a skeptical Crow asked. The Lancers had told him of what Yugo and Rin had told Yuya and Yuzu, and he found it hard to believe.

"Well it's the only lead we've got," Sora said while licking his trademark lollipop. "Though does it really seem that unfathomable? I mean after all that madness with Zarc I'll believe anything."

"Indeed," Tsukikage added. "Having seen so much during Academia's war, I don't think a mythical summon is out of the question."

"So please, could you tell us more about the legends behind Dark Synchro Summoning?" Dennis asked.

"Well," Crow began, looking unsure, "even though I think this is crazy, I'll tell you. As you guys already know, the story behind the Dark Synchro comes from ancient folklore in an ancient civilization. Gigantic evil spirits tried to conquer the world, only to be stopped by a powerful god and his servants. Tell me, have you guys ever noticed that when Jack Atlas summons Red Daemon's Dragon Tyrant, he calls out for the Crimson Dragon? Well that's the god."

"So Jack actually invokes a god when summoning Tyrant? That's so cool!" Dennis said in awe.

"Yeah it does sound pretty cool." Crow admitted before continuing his story. "Now, being immortals, these evil spirits couldn't be killed. So instead they were sealed inside what are believed to now be known as the Nazca lines in Peru. These Earthbound Gods would clash with the Crimson Dragon and his servants every five thousand years in a never ending cycle."

"Eventually, humans began to assist the dragons in their fight, and the Crimson Dragon chose them as his vassals. He gave these people a mark that resembled a part of his body, you know like its head or its wings. These people became known as Signers, and they battled alongside the dragon's servants, all of which were Synchro monsters."

"So how do Dark Synchros come into play," Gongenzaka questioned. Though he found the history lesson fascinating, they did have a job to do.

"I was just about to get to that. So the Earthbounds, wanting to even the odds or something, created their own Signers. However, these were different. The Dark Signers, all of which held grudges against the Signers, had died and been brought back to life."

Dennis gulped loudly. "You mean, that they were all undead?" He asked, visibly startled by the revelation.

"Yup. On the brink of death, the Earthbounds promised them life and power in exchange for their service. The Earthbounds gave them the ability to summon unique monsters by subtracting the Levels of a Dark Tuner. This was known as the Dark Synchro summon." Crow finished

"So, that's going to haunt me tonight," Sora said, fear written right across his face. He moved his hand to grab a drink of water, hoping to calm himself.

"Yeah, thatssssss quuuiiitt the stor-" Crow attempted to say, gradually slowing down before he stopped, mouth hanging wide open. One of the Lancers would have tried to help him out…..

But they had mysteriously frozen as well.

…..

"Sir please calm down!" A nurse shouted, struggling to hold the struggling Ushio down. After mentioning Dark Synchro, the injured Officer began to panic, the monitor showing his heart rate skyrocketing.

"Jood bob Meiji." Sawatari slurred, still numb.

"This scoop is a lot more intense then I imagine," Carly voiced, hiding behind Jack. "If something happens, you'll protect me right Jack."

"Of course I would," the former king said. It didn't have much emotion, but it got the job done.

"Alright, calm down," Yuya said as he slowly approached the frightened officer. "Everything will be okay-" he was cut off by Ushio swinging his arm into him, knocking the teen onto the floor.

"Ow. You're a strong person." The Entertainment duelist said, looking up to see, well he wasn't sure what he was seeing. The doctor and a few nurses were struggling to hold Ushio down, except they were all frozen. Ushio's mouth was hanging wide open and his arm was sticking right out in front of him.

"Yuya…." Came Yuzu's voice. He looked up to see the others all staring at him, except no one but Yuzu was moving. "What's going on?"

 _"Impossible! Everyone is frozen!"_ A speechless Yuto said.

 _"Yeah it's like someone hit 'Pause' on a video game."_ Yugo added.

"Why are we the only ones who aren't frozen?" Yuzu asked.

 _"I don't know, and I don't like it,"_ Rin said, holding her arms in a defensive position.

The two teens left the room, and saw a few doctors and nurses all standing perfectly still, just like mannequins. They were the only ones who could move.

 _"What do you suppose?"_ Ruri said, eyes wandering over the hall.

"I don't know," Yuzu replied. If she and Yuya were the only ones who could move, it was obvious that someone wanted them to. "We should split up," she suggested. "I'll search the rest of the hospital for anyone else, you check outside."

"Alright," Yuya responded. "Be safe," he told her before running down the hall.

 _"Yugo better not do anything stupid."_ Rin proclaimed, a combination of worry and annoyance in her voice.

…..

Yuya ran down the hall, looking for anyone or anything that would tell them why time had just stopped. Now back in the lobby, all he saw were people standing around like statues, unmoving and unable to respond. A million questions ran through his head, why it was that he and Yuzu remained free to move, for one.

 _"Well I don't know about you guys,"_ Yugo began, _"but I for one-"_

 _"Shush! I hear something."_ Yuri suddenly said, cutting off Yugo.

 _"Hey don't you shush me when I'm talking!"_ an irritated Yugo said.

 _"No, he's right, I can hear something too."_ Yuto said, holding up his hand to his ear.

Suddenly Yuya could hear it to; the sound of footsteps. He turned his head towards the sound, and saw someone walking on the other side of the hospital's glass doors. The person's face was covered up by a hooded black cloak with icy blue trim. Holding his arm out in front of him, Yuya could see the person's eyes glow a deep blue before the doors suddenly shattered.

"Nani?" a shocked Yuya asked, the other three reacting in similar ways.

"Sakaki Yuya," the person spoke in a monotone voice, no emotion or will. "If you wish to know why this is happening, come with me."

 _"Don't listen to him!"_ Yuri objected.

 _"Yeah! You know it's bad if I'm actually agreeing with Yuri!"_ added Yugo.

"This choice is for Sakaki Yuya only. The three of you can only stand by for this," the mysterious stranger said, much to the shock of the four boys.

 _"He can see us?"_ a surprised Yuto said.

Despite not trusting this person, Yuya decided to follow him, if only to get answers. "Alright, I'll come with you."

From under the hood, Yuya could see the person's face perk up in a smile. "Excellent."

…..

Yuzu ran as fast as she could. She had searched for any signs of life within the frozen hospital, when all of a sudden she heard someone's laughter echo across the walls. Turning around a corner, she saw a humanoid figure standing in front of her. Before she could say anything, the person held out her hand towards the roof, and a wall of purple flames surrounded the two of them.

 _"What the hell!"_ Serena exclaimed. Stunned by the sudden appearance of the flames, Yuzu turned towards them. To her surprise, they didn't seem to emit any heat. No, instead they felt less like fire and more like energy that had taken the appearance of flames.

"What a disappointment," said the voice of the person who had conjured the flames. Turning her head around, Yuzu and her counterparts saw a better image of who it was. This figure was actually a girl with a tanned complexion, who despite being only around four and a half feet, looked to be about Yuzu's age if her face was any indication. Her long hair was pink and her eyes were orange. On top of her head was a wide brimmed green hat, and her outfit was a black robe with pink trim. She looked at Yuzu with displeased eyes.

"You aren't the one I was assigned to find." Yuzu recognized the sound of her voice, it was the same as the laughter she had heard. "Ah well, guess I can take a hostage."

"Hostage? Who are you? What is going on?" Yuzu demanded to know.

"I am known as the 4th Daughter, and this beautiful event is the work of my master," the girl explained. "He was the one who assigned me to hunt down a traitor, but it appears you've been caught in the spider's web instead. No matter, a victory is a victory."

The girl held up her left arm, revealing a black rectangular duel disk. It was rather small, only going halfway to her elbow. On one end was a deck slot, covered up by small fangs that bent downward, and on the other was what appeared to be a small chainsaw. In the center of the device was a square shaped touch screen, and in front of the body was a Solid Vision projection of a large, inward facing pink crescent shape that went past her shoulder. Yuzu understood what this person was trying to do; defeat her in a duel and use her as a hostage against, whoever it was they were looking for.

 _"Oh no, I am not playing damsel in distress! Yuzu,"_ Serena shouted, _"teach this freak show a lesson."_

"Please," Yuzu said, trying to prevent a fight. "I don't know who you are, but we don't have to fight."

"That's where you're wrong," the 4th Daughter scoffed. "So long as the Priests wish it, it is my duty to obey. Now, put up your Duel Disk and fight, or stand down and come quietly!"

Scowling, Yuzu quickly activated her duel disk. She would not be held captive again.

"DUEL!"

 **Yuzu:**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **Vs.**

 **The 4th Daughter**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

"I'll start first." The 4th Daughter declared, taking one card from her hand and placing it on the blade of her duel disk. "I Normal Summon Dark Anchor Effigy – Guiding Light."

Appearing beside her was a disembodied statue hand holding up a glowing lantern. Atop of the lantern was a chain that coiled around the hand.

 **Dark Anchor Effigy – Guiding Light: 1900 ATK/ 0 DEF/ Level 4/ other stats unavailable**

"Dark Anchor," Yuzu wondered. "What do you guys think that monster is?"

 _"I don't know, but I don't trust it,"_ Rin said, glaring daggers towards the floating hand.

"I see you're concerned about my monster, well don't worry," the 4th Daughter said mockingly, "You won't have too for long."

…

Yuya followed the hooded stranger for a good ten minutes. After agreeing to go with him, the person just ran off in the direction of a Riding Duel track. Eventually Yuya had to stop running, his legs too weak to carry him any further. Suddenly, he heard the sound of a revving engine, and it was growing louder each second. Looking up, he saw a D-Wheel rushing right towards him!

"AHHH!" he yelled as he jumped out of the way. Turning his head around he saw that the stranger, now wearing a white and blue helmet, riding a motorcycle that was larger and a bit bulkier than most other D-Wheels he had seen. It was primarily white, with a few deep blue accents running across the body, and two large wheels at the ends. In front of the rider was a blue light in the shape of a ten pointed star. Attached to that D-Wheel was a standard red one, similar to the one he had used during the Friendship Cup two years back.

 _"What the heck?! Are you trying to kill us?"_ Yugo asked furiously.

"Yes." The rider said bluntly.

 _"Okay…"_ the Synchro boy said awkwardly. _"Did not expect him to say that."_

"Tsk. Why are you trying to kill me?" asked Yuya, who already had a lot of problems on his mind.

"Defeat me in a Duel and I won't have too," the Rider explained before pressing a button on his bike's duel disk.

"Field Mahou, Speed World Mach 2, set on." The device spoke in a monotone voice. From the center of the bike, a holographic energy ring shot out, bathing the trackway in fluorescent lighting. The sides of the track ignited and became covered in icy blue flames that spread forward and backwards, not stopping for a second. They moved in straight lines, turns and even cut certain parts of the trackway off. When seen from above, an entire path on the trackway had been outlined by these flames.

 _"As if this day couldn't get any worse."_ remarked Yuri. Yuya was about to agree with him when suddenly the stranger took a red D-Wheel helmet and threw it right at him.

"As long as these flames burn, you cannot leave the track. Now," the stranger pointed towards Yuya, "Duel me and face the power of a true duelist!"

Yuya frowned. Though he wished things were going better for him, he reluctantly placed his helmet on and sat down on the other D-Wheel. Upon sitting down, the blade on the built in duel disk activated.

"Field Mahou, Cross-over Accel, activate." The disk spoke. An orb containing multiple cards of light appeared in the sky before bursting and scattering the cards across the track.

"Before we begin, allow me to explain," the stranger said, earning the attention of all four boys. "Speed World Mach 2's effects apply to both of us." He chuckled, "This field has a plethora of effects, but I won't spoil them for now. Just know," he pointed towards the first corner, "Whoever reaches that Checkpoint first will take the first turn."

Without saying anything else, the stranger slammed down on the acceleration. Momentarily stunned, Yuya hit the peddle of his D-Wheel as well, accelerating at top speed. The two motorcycles ran neck and neck, but at the last second the stranger leaned closer to the corner, allowing him to hit the Checkpoint first.

"Duel!"

 **Yuya:**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **Vs.**

 **Unknown:**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

"As I reached Checkpoint One first, I will take the first move." The unknown duelist said after drawing his opening hand. "Due to the effect of Speed World Mach 2, I can have an additional Field Spell in place. I activate the Field Spell, Blizzard Sanctuary!"

Without warning a massive blizzard suddenly appeared, frigid winds swirling at nearly twenty miles an hour. Yuya felt the sheer cold brush against him, his skin nearly turning into ice. Shaking like a wet dog, Yuya looked up and saw a snow capped mountain that wasn't there before.

"Blizzard Sanctuary's effect. Once per turn I can add one Level Four or lower Blizzard monster from my Deck to my hand," the stranger declared. "I add Blizzard Archer!" A card slid out from his deck, which he quickly added to his hand before plucking another one up.

"Next, the Spell card Blizzard Survival! By discarding one Blizzard monster, I may draw two cards," he explained, sending the monster Blizzard Lizard from his hand to his graveyard. Two cards slid out of his deck. Appearing over him as he sped up, a ring with twelve little spots labeled "Speed Counters" appeared with one of them lighting up.

 **Unknown's Speed Counters: 1**

"Speed Counter," Yuya mumbled, unsure of what to make of the mechanic. "Yugo, do you know what Speed Counters are?"

 _"Nope."_ the Synchro boy replied.

 _"I wonder,"_ Yuri pondered, holding his chin. _"If Speed World Mach 2 applies to both players, does this mean you can get your own Speed Counters on the card as well?"_

 _"It's highly likely."_ Yuto replied. _"Bring up the effects of that card."_ he told Yuya, gesturing to the image of the card on the duel disk's touch screen.

"Yeah." Pushing the screen a few times, an image of Speed World Mach 2, which featured shining bikes racing across an infinitely looping blue and green trackway at light speed. The four of them looked at the text of the card… and saw that the writing on the card was very small and hard to read.

 _"What the heck?! How many effects does this thing have?"_ a stupefied Yugo exclaimed.

"I don't know," Yuya admitted. "You guys try to find out as much as you can about that card, I'll focus on the duel." The three boys nodded in agreement.

"I suggest you focus on what's happening in this moment," the stranger called out. "Because I control no monsters, I can Special Summon this monster. Come, Blizzard Axeman!"

A reptilian figure appeared on the stranger's field. His scales were a deep blue, and he wore an icy blue breast plate with a snowy white cape whirling on his back. In his right hand he held a massive two headed axe with blades made out of ice.

 **Blizzard Axeman (Defense Position): 2000 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ WATER/ Level 5/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

 **Unknown's Speed Counters: 2**

 _"Okay we've got something!"_ Yugo said, having managed to identify some of the effects of Mach 2.

 _"Every time a player draws a card or Special Summons monsters, that person gets one of their own Speed Counters placed on Speed World Mach 2. They can have up to twelve counters at a time."_ explained Yuto.

 _"And every time someone takes 1000 damage, they lose one counter."_ Yuri added.

"Seems powerful." Yuya remarked. What the counters were for, he still wondered about.

 _"Hold on a second!"_ Yugo interjected. _"It says here because he's going first he can only have up to four counters placed on his card. So that means-"_

"Blizzard Sanctuary's other effect!" the opponent shouted, cutting off Yugo. "Each time a Blizzard monster is Special Summoned, you take 300 damage!"

The winds around the two riding duelists howled furiously as they whipped up even more. Yuya felt the area around him drop a couple more degrees as they rushed past him.

 **Yuya LP: 4000 – 3700**

"Now then, Blizzard Axeman's effect. When this card is Special Summoned, I can Special Summon a Level Three or lower Blizzard monster from my hand. I Special Summon Blizzard Archer!"

Appearing next to the reptilian soldier was a spindly lizard man. He wore an icy blue cape with an arrow filled quiver resting on his back. He wielded a bow which appeared to be entirely made of ice.

 **Blizzard Archer (Defense Position): 1200 ATK/ 1300 DEF/ WATER/ Level 3/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

 **Unknown's Speed Counters: 3**

 **Yuya LP: 3700 – 3400**

The duel had only begun but Yuya was shivering like there was no tomorrow. The relentless cold caused by his opponent's effects had already given him the lead.

 _"Oh please."_ Yugo scoffed. _"This is nothing! Have you dueled Rin? Compared to her this is like a warm breeze."_

 _"Yugo, you are the only one of us Rin has ever dueled."_ Yuto reminded.

 _"Yeah and if I'm being honest, you're the only person I know she interacted with during the Academia war."_ Yuri admitted.

 _"What are you saying?"_

"I set one monster and one card. Turn end." the rider said as he finished his turn.

"My turn!" Yuya declared, taking his first draw.

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 1**

"I have to be careful," Yuya muttered. "He has three monsters, one of which is face down. I'll have to be careful, but strong. I Normal Summon Entermate Skullcrobat Joker!"

Running next to Yuya's D-Wheel was a blonde magician in a purple and black jester outfit, giggling an infectious laugh. On his head was a black hat with a purple skull face embedded in the front.

 **Entermate Skullcrobat Joker: 1800 ATK/ 100 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S 8/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Skullcrobat Joker's effect," Yuya said, continuing his momentum. "When this monster is Normal Summoned, I can add an Entermate, Odd-Eyes, or Magician Pendulum Monster from my Deck to my hand! I add Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!"

Skullcrobat Joker removed his top hat and stuck his hand into it. Moving it around as if he was searching for something, he pulled out the card for Odd-Eyes, which he graciously gave to Yuya.

"Excellent," the rider whispered. "The target is preparing to summon the Four Dragons."

"Next, since I control an Entermate monster, I can Special Summon this card! Come, Entermate Card Bird!"

Flapping a set of six card wings, a yellow bird wearing a pair of glasses and a top hat appeared next to Yuya's D-Wheel.

 **Entermate Card Bird (Attack position): 800 ATK/ 1600 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ P.S. 5/ Winged Beast/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 2**

"Now, I activate the Spell, Pendulum Card Burst! By destroying Skullcrobat Joker and Card Bird, who are both Pendulum Monsters, I draw two cards," the boy said. His two monsters disappeared as he drew two more cards.

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 3**

The continued addition of Speed Counters had allowed Yuya to catch up with his opponent. The two were now racing at the same speed.

"Summoning two monsters while being able to keep six cards in your hand, I'm impressed." The mystery rider spoke. "I can feel it, the dragons are coming up next. You really are Zarc's successor."

Yuya's foot nearly dropped on the peddle like a rock. "How do you know about that?" Only a few people had known the truth about Zarc, Ray, and the Original Dimension, the general public didn't know.

"My people know many things," the stranger calmly explained. "Our leader is well aware of the truths behind you and Hiragi Yuzu. Unlike you, however, he knows the true strengths the dragons hold."

"True strength," a puzzled Yuya repeated. "What do you mean?"

"That is not important. Now, continue this duel or end your turn!"

Yuya grimaced, disturbed by his foe's words. Did the dragons possess more power beside that of Zarc? Does that power have something to do with this time freeze? More questions kept popping up by the second and he barely had time to get answers.

Reluctantly, Yuya grabbed a pair of cards from his hand and played them. "With the Scale 3 Antithesis Magician and the Scale 8 Synthesis Magician, I set the Pendulum Scale!"

The pair of Spellcasters appeared in two columns of light on Yuya's left and right. On his left was Antithesis over a glowing 3, while on his right was Synthesis over a glowing 8. The image of Yuya's Pendulum appeared between the two and began swinging as Yuya chanted.

"With this, I can Summon monsters whose Levels are between 4 and 7. Swing, Pendulum of the soul! Draw an arc of light across the ether! Pendulum Summon! Appear now! My monsters!"

A trio of orbs of light, each a different color, exited from the arc created by the Pendulum. "Return from my Extra Deck, Entermate Skullcrobat Joker! And from my hand, Entermate Warrior Tiger as well as Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!"

Yuya's three monsters appeared around him. Next to his ace dragon and Skullcrobat Joker was an anthropomorphic tiger dressed like he was in a marching band.

 **Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon (Attack Position): 2500 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Entermate Warrior Tiger (Attack Position): 1700 ATK/ 500 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 4/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 4**

 _"Oh I see what you're doing."_ Yugo said, predicting Yuya's next move based on his field. _"You're gonna pull out Odd-Eyes Rebellion Dragon and OTK him. Great move."_

"No," Yuya replied, much to the three Counterpart's confusion. "I can't defeat him just yet. I want to know what he meant about Odd-Eyes and the others having more power. On top of that, he's the only one who knows why times has stopped," he explained. "I need to know what's going on."

 _"Alright,"_ Yuto spoke calmly. _"But be careful. He still has that Set card and who knows how many effects with Speed World Mach 2."_

"I understand," the Pendulum Counterpart replied. "Battle! Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon attacks Blizzard Axeman! Spiral Strike Burst!"

Yuya's dragon fired its powerful attack, engulfing and destroying the axe wielding monster in a burst of flame. Before Yuya could continue, the winds from Blizzard Sanctuary kicked up again, and Odd-Eyes became incased in ice, and then was destroyed.

"What!?" Yuya shouted in confusion.

"Blizzard Axeman's effect. When it is destroyed, I destroy one card my opponent controls," the mysterious duelist explained.

 _"He wanted you to destroy his monster,"_ Yuri summarized. _"Good thing he didn't summon Rebellion Dragon otherwise Yuya would be down his only monster, eh Yugo."_ He said, playfully elbowing Yugo in the side.

 _"Yeah, good thing."_ Yugo said before realizing what Yuri meant. _"Oh, I get it. That was an insult, ha ha."_

"He may have destroyed Odd-Eyes, but I still have two more monsters! Warrior Tiger, attack Blizzard Archer!" On command, the tiger monster pounced on the reptilian archer and (ironically) bear hugged him into nothingness.

"Warrior Tiger's effect acti-"Yuya said, only to be cut off by his opponent.

"Blizzard Archer's effect! When it is destroyed, this turn's Battle Phase comes to an end."

 _"Great,"_ Yuri said sarcastically. _"His deck focus on burn and destruction. Yay!"_

 _"Knock it off Yuri!"_ Yuto snapped, not in the mood for any antics.

 _"Just being honest."_ the Fusion boy shrugged.

Yuya however did agree with Yuri. His opponent was willing to let his cards be destroyed so that his own plans would be useless. "Because Warrior Tiger destroyed a monster by battle, I can add an Entermate Pendulum Monster from my Deck to my hand. I add Entermate Cheermole to my hand by this effect."

Said monster slid out from Yuya's Deck. "I set one card and end my turn. At this time, Entermate Card Bird's effect activates. During the End Phase of the turn it was destroyed, I draw one card."

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 5**

"Watashi no turn," the opponent declared, drawing his card.

 **Unknown's Speed Counters: 4**

"First, I Flip Summon the monster that I had set earlier. Appear, Blizzard Lizard."

The facedown card in his Monster Zone flipped face up. In a flash of light, a pale yellow lizard covered in blue and white fur appeared next to its owner.

 **Blizzard Lizard: 300 ATK/ 1800 DEF/ WATER/ Level 3/ Beast/ Effect**

"Next," the duelist continued, "the Continuous Trap, Call of the Haunted, activates!" His other set card revealed itself as a card that many a duelist was familiar with. "With this effect, I Special Summon the Blizzard Lizard that I had discarded earlier! Revive, Blizzard Lizard!"

An exact duplicate of the first lizard appeared next to the original. And of course, a Blizzard monster was Special Summoned, which was bad news for Yuya.

 **Unknown's Speed Counters: 5**

 **Yuya's LP: 3400 – 3100**

"I'm not done yet, this fight is only just beginning!" the opponent said smugly, playing a Spell card in his hand. "I activate Ice Mirror! By this card's effect, I target a Water attribute monster on the field with a Level of '3' or lower I control and Special Summon a monster identical to that monster from my Deck! I summon a final Blizzard Lizard!"

 **Yuya's LP: 3100 – 2800**

 **Unknown's Speed Counters: 6**

 _"Yugo be honest,"_ said Yuto. _"Is dueling Rin worse than this?"_

 _"Yeah, I don't even have a body and I can feel this!"_

 _"Wimps."_ a smug Yuri mocked.

"Now," the mystery duelist said ominously. "It is time. I release two of my Blizzard Lizards and Tribute Summon the Dark Tuner, Blizzard Executioner!"

"Dark Tuner!?" Yuya and the other three repeated in shock.

Two of the fur-covered lizards disappeared, and in their place came a humanoid lizard that was about six foot nine inches tall. He wore a hooded cloak that covered his face, and on his sides was a belt holding about six knives, a mace and a small war hammer. In one of his hands he wielded a massive battle axe, twice the size of Blizzard Axeman's.

 **Blizzard Executioner: 1500 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WATER/ Level 8/ Beast-Warrior/ Dark Tuner/ Effect**

"Hey Yugo," Yuya asked nervously, afraid to be right. "Exactly what was the name of the monster needed to perform that Dark Synchro again?"

 _"Dark Tuner,"_ the Synchro boy answered, his voice going up an octave or two.

"It seems you know of what I am about to do," Yuya's opponent said in a mocking tone. "Good, that way you may bear witness to true power! I subtract the Level 8 Blizzard Executioner from the Level 3 Blizzard Lizard and perform Dark Tuning!"

 _"This is bad!"_ Shouted Yuto.

Blizzard Executioner glowed before transforming into a series of eight stars. The stars quickly flew towards Blizzard Lizard and embedded themselves into the monster. Turning transparent as it groaned in pain, three new stars revealed themselves inside of the lizard. The two sets of stars collided with each other, before the reptile disappeared, five black stars rotating in a circular motion in its place.

"What, the stars have gone dark?" Yuya questioned.

"That is correct. The Dark Tuner Blizzard Executioner's Level is 8, while Blizzard Lizard is Level 3. A Dark Synchro Summon beckons forth a Dark Synchro Monster with a Level equal to that of a Dark Tuner Subtracted from the Level of a non-Tuner!" explained the mystery duelist.

"But eight from three is five!" Yuya said before realizing what his opponent meant. "That means…"

"Yes," his opponent said coldly. "The Dark Synchro Summon calls forth a monster with a Negative Level!"

 _"Negative?"_ Yugo said in shock.

 _"Then that means that the energy Akaba Reiji had detected before really must have been a Dark Synchro!"_ Yuto realized.

"Ruler of the frozen underworld, rise up from your slumber! Destroy those who dare worship the light!" he chanted, removing a card from his Extra Deck. In the brief glance Yuya caught, he saw that the card was gray, like that of a Token Monster, but darker. In addition that level stars were on the left side of the card like that of an Xyz Monster's Rank, but they were purple colored and placed in blue circles instead. "Dark Synchro! Show yourself, Level Negative 5, Blizzard King Fitzgerald!"

The five stars exploded into a column of purple light, and from it came a monster made completely out of clear ice. It appeared to be inanimate, and in the shape of a 'T' with pointed ends. The only thing that made the creature seem alive was the pair of glowing red eyes on its 'head'. Around what appeared to be its chest was a chunk of black ice. Sprouting from its back and pointing forward were a set of four tentacles made out of ice. The ominous moan the creature emitted made an already freezing Yuya feel even colder.

 **Blizzard King Fitzgerald (Attack Position): 2500 ATK/ 2500 DEF/ WATER/ Level -5/ Fiend/ Dark Synchro/ Effect**

 **Unknown's Speed Counters: 7**

"This is….. Dark Synchro?" a stunned Yuya said, unable to fully believe it.

"Yes! This is the power that belongs to us of the Dark Dimension!" the duelist shouted. "The power to call forth monsters from the world without light! Submit to your destiny Sakaki Yuya, for now you will face the judgement of a true god's disciple!"

* * *

Cards in this Chapter:

**6th Daughter's Card**

Dark Anchor Effigy – Guiding Light

1900 ATK/ 0 DEF/ Level 4/ _Other Stats unrevealed._

**Unknown's cards**

Blizzard Axeman

2000 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ WATER/ Level 5/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your hand) if you control no monsters. You can only Special Summon "Blizzard Axeman" once per turn this way. If this card is Special Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 Level 3 or lower "Blizzard" monster from your hand. If this card is destroyed by battle or by card effect: You can target 1 card your opponent controls; destroy it. You can only use each effect of "Blizzard Axeman" once per turn.

Blizzard Archer

1200 ATK/ 1300 DEF/ WATER/ level 3/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect

If this card is Special Summoned: You can target 1 card your Opponent controls; destroy it. If this card is destroyed by battle: End the Battle Phase.

Blizzard Executioner

1500 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WATER/ Level 8/ Beast-Warrior/ Dark Tuner/ Effect

 _Effects unrevealed_

Blizzard King Fitzgerald

2500 ATK/ 2500 DEF/ WATER/ Level -5/ Fiend/ Dark Synchro/ Effect

1 or more non-Tuners – 1 Dark Tuner

 _Effects unrevealed_

Speed World Mach 2

Field Spell

The player who reaches Checkpoint 1 first takes the first turn. You can activate 1 other Field Spell Card in addition to this card. Unaffected by other card effects. Each time a player draws a card(s) or Special Summons a monster(s),(Other than with the effects of this card), that player places one of his/her own Speed Counters on this card (Max. 12). (The player who goes first cannot place more than 4 Speed Counters on this card for their first turn.) During either player's turn, you can remove any number of your own Speed Counters to activate 1 of the following effects based on the number of Speed Counters removed. 1+: Increase the ATK or DEF of 1 monster you control by 100 for each Speed Counter removed for this effect. 2: Increase your LP by 500. 4: Halve the damage you take from 1 battle or card effect. 6: Draw 1 card. 8: Destroy 1 card on the field. 10: Negate the activation of a card or effect, and if you do, destroy it. 12: Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower monster from your Hand, Deck, Graveyard, or Extra Deck ignoring the summoning conditions. If a player takes damage, that player loses 1 of his/her Speed Counters for every 1000 points of damage he/she took.

 **(Credits to Donjusticia for this BEAST of a card, as well as the O/C Yuzu is dueling in this and the next chapter.)**

Blizzard Sanctuary

Field Spell

Each time you Special Summon a "Blizzard" monster: Inflict 300 damage to your opponent. Once per turn: You can add 1 Level 4 or lower "Blizzard" monster from your Deck to your hand.

Blizzard Survival

Normal Spell

Discard 1 "Blizzard" monster: Draw 2 cards.

**Kyosuke Kiryu's cards** *He's back baby!*

Infernity Assassin

1000 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 10/ Warrior/ Dark Tuner/ Effect

If this card is Normal or Special Summoned while you have no cards in your hand: Draw 1 card and reveal it. It that card is an "Infernity" monster: Special Summon it. If not, send it to the GY. _Other effects unrevealed_.

* * *

 **Whew, that was hard work, but worth it.**

 **So the most obvious thing is that the 5Ds characters that have reappeared in the Arc V universe. It felt nice being able to bring them back. Ushio is probably only here to kick start the main plot, but Kiryu and Carly, I'm especially excited to bring them back. So what you guys think they're going to do in the story, I can't tell you just yet.**

 **Lot of stuff going on in this chapter, between the time freeze and establishing a few things, including the 5Ds references. Some of you may be asking, based on the discussion Crow had with the Lancers, why is there mention of the Dark Signers arc in the story. Well for two reasons, first is to justify why we saw the Crimson Dragon in Arc V (other than because it was an awesome cameo), and second is because the myths of the Crimson Dragon and the lore behind Dark Synchro is going to be important down the line. Other than that, no actual Dark Signers in this story.**

 **One more thing before I get to reviews. And that is to say in a few chapters, I will start accepting any O/C submissions you guys have. Don't start creating them just yet, wait a few chapters when submission officially starts. Also don't expect them to have major roles in the story, at best they would be a Duelist of the Week. But if I really like the O/C, then they might show up more than once.**

 **Now reviews because I did so much that I don't know what else to say.**

 **Elbarto4000: I won't say how that's going to work yet, it'll make things more interesting.**

 **Epsilon Tarantula: I fell as if you are my harshest critic. But that's good, because I have someone to remind me to keep improving. As for your complaint about how similar the Link Dimension is to the start of Vrains, just remember it will divert from the main series. And about Revolver, who is to say this is a legacy version and not just a different character with the same name, huh? Remember, Revolver is who the character is while in Link VRAINS, not who they are in reality. You'll see what I mean in the coming future. Other than that, I'm glad you liked Yuta and Kasumi.**

 **HunterHQ: Well when I'm ready I'll ask you for those cards. Also, and this is just a nitpick but one that really grinds my gears, can you and the other readers refer to Yuri's dragons by Japanese name. I really cannot stand the English names (Freaky fact; I think I actually predicted the name change).**

 **Donjusticia: Well I've already spoke to you about that. I guess when we reach the Link Dimension I'll have Into the VRAINS said phonetically next time. And Tri-Tail not having the Level 5 monster effect, again, YOU DESIGNED THE CARD!**

 **UnknowedZ: Um, yeah I don't know whether or not Zarc (the monster) will be appearing outside of flashbacks.**

 **So I'm probably forgetting a few things, but I'm busy and….**

 **Oh no wait, I've decided to give 'Episode Summaries' for the next two chapters:**

 **Chapter 5: The Corrupted Summons**

 **As Yuya duels against the unknown Riding Duelist, Yuzu faces off against someone who has mistaken her for another. Having grown since the Interdimensional War, Yuzu establishes an early lead with Pendulum Summoning. However, her opponent turns things around with the mysterious Dark Anchor Summon!**

 **Chapter 6: Aftermath of the Frozen Day**

 **Yuya and Yuzu explain to the others about what happened while time stood still. Attempting to solve the mystery they had gotten themselves into, they find themselves unaware of a mysterious pair of eyes watching on, like a serpent waiting to strike.**

 **I did some outlining for a couple chapters so now I can give little previews, yay!**

 **Good bye, sayonara, ciao, adios and for any native New Yorkers get outta here!**


	5. The Corrupted Summons

**Chapter 5. Don't have much to say really, school took up a lot of my time. But as a treat for your patience, not only do you get this chapter, but if you're following my other story Dimension Crisis, you get a little sneak peek at Ray's Deck! Whoopee!**

 **Credits to Donny for proofreading and** ** _most_** **of Yuzu's cards, as well as her opponent's cards.**

 **ANDIFYOUVEREADHISSTORYSIGNSOFRENEWALYOURGETINGAKINDOFFSNEAKPEAKTOO!**

 **Yu-Gi-Oh, not mine, if it was I'd have given Arc V an epilogue before VRAINS started, or at the very least altered the final arc of the show.**

* * *

 **Yuya:**

 **2800 LP**

 **Controls Entermate Skullcrobat Joker and Entermate Warrior Tiger**

 **1 Card Set in Spell/Trap Zone**

 **Antithesis Magician (Scale 3) and Synthesis Magician (Scale 8) are active in his Pendulum Zones**

 **3 cards in Hand**

 **Entermate Skullcrobat Joker (Attack Position): 1800 ATK/ 100 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 8/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Entermate Warrior Tiger (Attack Position): 1700 ATK/ 500 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 4/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

 **Speed Counters on Speed World Mach 2: 5**

 **VS.**

 **Unknown:**

 **LP: 4000**

 **Controls Blizzard King Fitzgerald**

 **Call of the Haunted face-up in Spell/Trap Zone**

 **Blizzard Sanctuary and Speed World Mach 2 are face-up in the Field Spell Zone**

 **No cards in Hand**

 **Blizzard King Fitzgerald (Attack Position): 2500 ATK/ 2500 DEF/ WATER/ Level -5/ Fiend/ Dark Synchro/ Effect**

 **Speed Counters on Speed World Mach 2: 7**

 **Unknown's Turn**

"Sakaki Yuya," the duelist spoke, voice echoing across the field." This is just a fraction of the power we of the Dark Dimension possess. You and the inhabitants of this and all other dimensions stand no chance against our might."

The Pendulum Duelist did not respond, too many thoughts were running around in his head. First there was the fact that time was frozen around him, then there was his opponent, who wanted to kill him apparently. Add to the fact he knew about Zarc, claimed that Odd-Eyes and the other dragons had a hidden power, as well as the fact that he had just performed the supposedly fictional Dark Synchro Summon, claiming that it came from some kind of 'Dark Dimension'… Yuya was feeling dizzy.

"Now then," the mystery duelist continued, gesturing towards Yuya. "Since I Special Summoned another Blizzard monster, that's 300 more damage to your Life!"

 **Yuya LP: 2800 – 2500**

"In addition, Blizzard Executioner's effect activates! When this card is used as Dark Synchro Material, I destroy one monster my opponent controls. Be gone, Soldier Tiger!"

The spirit of Blizzard Executioner reappeared on the field. The lizard man grabbed a few knifes from his belt and flung them at Yuya's monster, destroying the poor man-tiger.

The mystery duelist smirked, "Now then, it's time to finish this. Blizzard King Fitzgerald attacks Entermate Skullcrobat Joker!"

The ice creature moaned ominously as it pointed its tendrils at Yuya's remaining monster before firing a series of ice shards at the flamboyant joker.

"Trap activate!" Yuya shouted, attempting to protect his monster.

"Don't even try," the mystery duelist mocked. "When Fitzgerald attacks, you can't use Spell or Traps until after the damage step."

Yuya gasped, unable to do anything else. The ice shards came down onto Skullcrobat Joker and destroyed him.

 **Yuya LP: 2500-1800**

"At this time, Blizzard King Fitzgerald's other effect activates! When this card destroys a monster by battle, the opposing player takes damage equal to the attack of that monster." The mystery duelist smirked, feeling victorious. "Skullcrobat Joker's ATK is 1800, therefore you take 1800 damage. IT'S OVER!"

Fitzgerald fired a bolt of lightning at Yuya's D-Wheel. Right before the bolt hit, Yuya saw an Action card a few feet ahead. Speeding up just enough, Yuya grabbed the card.

"Action Magic, Acceleration!" Declared Yuya, throwing the card down. "Effect damage is negated!"

A barrier of light surrounded the red D-Wheel that protected him from the lightning bolt, as well as losing the Duel.

His opponent snarled, "I really hate those things." Sighing, he continued his turn, "Using Blizzard Sanctuary's effect, I add Blizzard Gardna from my Deck to my hand. Turn end."

" _Well that was quite the turn,"_ Yuri commented. _"He hasn't taken a single hit and you've lost over half your Life Points."_

" _I'll say,"_ Yugo added, taking deep breaths. _"Whoever this guy is, he's good."_

" _I just hope that Yuzu and the others are alright."_ Yuto said, concerned for the wellbeing of the girls.

"For their sake, I hope you're right Yuto."

…..

 **Yuzu:**

 **4000 LP**

 **Controls no cards**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **VS.**

 **4th Daughter:**

 **4000 LP**

 **Controls Dark Anchor Effigy – Guiding Light**

 **4 cards in Hand**

 **Dark Anchor Effigy – Guiding Light (Attack Position): 1900 ATK/ 0 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Magnitude: -4/ Psychic/ Dark Anchor/ Effect**

"Dark Anchor." Yuzu whispered, looking at the card on her Duel Disk. "What kind of card is a Dark Anchor?"

"Oh you'll see," the 4th Daughter replied with a smirk. "I activate the effect of Guiding Light. By tributing this card, I can add a different Dark Anchor card from my Deck to my hand!"

The lantern in the stone palm's hand emitted a blinding light. Yuzu and the others had to cover their eyes from the flash. When the light died down, Guiding Light had disappeared.

"I add the monster, Dark Anchor Effigy – Salvation Rock to my hand," the 4th Daughter said as she took the card from her deck and showed to Yuzu, who nearly dropped the cards in her hand from shock.

The card resembled a Pendulum Monster, but at the same time it was so different. Unlike a Pendulum Monster, the lower half of the card was purple, like a Trap card. On the top of the card was a green arrow that pointed upward, while the lower half of the card featured a yellow arrow that pointed downward. Near each arrow was a negative eight.

"What?" the Pendulum girl asked, barely able to believe what she was seeing. "That card, it's like a Pendulum Monster."

"Perhaps," the 4th Daughter purred. "But this is even better. You'll see soon enough." Taking an already existing card from her hand, she placed it and Salvation Rock into her Spell and Trap Zone. "I set these two cards in my Dark Anchor Zones and end my turn."

Two facedown cards appeared, one in front of the strange duelist and the other behind her. The one in front seemed to be too far away to be in the Monster Zone though.

" _So we're dealing with some kind of Pendulum-esque weirdo,"_ Serena snarked. _"This day just keeps getting better and better."_

" _Calm down,"_ Rin said in a motherly voice. _"Whatever this is, I'm sure Yuzu can handle it. Right Ruri?"_

The Xyz girl didn't respond, instead she just looked at the duel like a statue. Rolling her eyes, Serena snapped her fingers in front of Ruri's face in an attempt to get her to pay attention.

" _Hey, we're having a conversation here,"_ she remarked rather rudely.

" _Sorry,"_ Ruri apologized. " _I'm just a little concerned that Yuzu's opponent might be planning something."_

" _You know,"_ Rin said as she rubbed her chin, _"Is it just me or have you been awfully quiet today."_

" _Have I?"_ Ruri asked, sounding like she hadn't noticed. _"I guess I've had a lot of things on my mind."_

" _Well hopefully that includes a way for Yuzu to beat this weirdo and not crash and burn."_ Serena commented.

"I can hear you guys you know," a somewhat offended Yuzu quipped. One of the downsides of having people live in your head, you always know when they're talking about you. "And anyway, I'm not going to 'crash and burn', things have changed and I'm not the same person I was when I dueled Sergey."

Not long after the Dimensional War was over, Yuzu came to a realization that shook her confidence quite a bit: after her rather 'extreme' lose to Sergey in the Friendship Cup, she barely did anything to help the Lancers end the war. Apart from exposing Roger's plan to the Synchro Dimension (which no one native to the place cared about) and saving Yuya from Zarc (after being held as a 'damsel in distress' for who knows how long), she was basically a pylon. Distraught from her realization, Yuzu spent almost three months doing nothing but polish her dueling skills day and night. She had managed to win plenty of duels since, and her deck and changed and gotten stronger as proof. But to her, this duel was going to be make or break to prove if she had grown.

"My turn!" Yuzu declared as she drew. Looking at the card, she smiled. "I set Scale 3 Alto the Melodious Songstress in the Pendulum Scale!"

Floating in a column on Yuzu's right was a girl with a small rounded nose and bright green eyes. Her long straight hair was bright-red with a circular bang covering her forehead while a long straight strand cascaded down her right cheek like the tail of a quarter note. Her left ear was adorned with a blue crystal earring while her other one featured a red crystal earring. She wore a tight red dress that left her shoulders and arms bare, with a blue underside that bloomed outward near the ankles like an upside down flower.

"Hmm, so this is a Pendulum Monster," the 4th Daughter whispered curiously. "No matter, it will not help you. Nothing can overcome the powers given to us."

"We'll see about that," Yuzu replied before gesturing to Alto. "Alto's Pendulum Effect, when this card is the only one in my Pendulum Zone, I can add a Melodious Pendulum Monster from my Deck to my hand!"

Alto began to sing in a low voice as she was briefly enveloped in a pinkish-red aura. Once she was done, a card slid out of Yuzu's deck.

"I add Arpeggio the Melodious Diva from my Deck to my hand, and then I set her in my other Pendulum Zone!" Yuzu declared as she slammed the card down on her Duel Disk. With two cards in the Pendulum Zones, a rainbow "PENDULUM" appeared on the disk's blade.

Appearing opposite of Alto was a girl in an elegant black and violet dress. On her head was tri-colored black, purple and lavender hair that was styled upward like a flower, with strands of golden hair sprouting out from the center like stamen. On her back was a pair of clear piano wings that shimmered like a rainbow. A glowing '7' appeared under her, while a glowing '3' appeared under Alto.

"Now that I have two cards in my Pendulum Zone, I use Arpeggio's Pendulum Effect! Once per turn, I can raise the Scale of one card in my Pendulum Zone up by three while decreasing the Scale of the card in my other Zone by up to three as well! With this effect, I increase Arpeggio's Scale to ten while changing Alto's Scale to one!"

Positioning her wings closer, the fairy dressed in purple played a short tune on the piano keys. The number beneath her changed to '10' while the one under Alto transformed into a '1.'

Yuzu looked at her hand. No monster she had in her hand would help _right now_ , but….. "I activate the Field Spell, Divine Melodious Stage!"

The hospital hallway transformed into a massive opera theater, with a crystal chandelier hanging on the ceiling and flowing red curtains. Yuzu's counterparts, primarily Ruri, gazed at the new field in awe as bits of confetti rained downed from above, and the air was filled with beautiful melodies performed by legions of small fairies and sprites playing tiny instruments. The two girls now stood on a raised platform raised above rows of thousands of cushy red seats.

The 4th Daughter was less than impressed. "Pretty, but not good enough."

Ignoring her opponent's taunts, Yuzu continued her turn. "I activate 1st Movement Solo, and Special Summon Quartet the Melodious Songstress from my Deck. Appear, Quartet!"

A new fairy appeared to the sound of music. She had short white hair with black-quarter note shaped side tails and a crystal crown. The dress she wore was comprised of many colors, resembling the four Extra Deck Summons. The front was a swirl of orange and blue with her skirt being a swirl of black and yellow. The dress' left sleeve was blue and decorated with glimmering rubies, while the right was red and covered in shimmering sapphires. Lastly, her long stockings and slippers were a bluish white with green rings.

 **Quartet the Melodious Songstress (Attack Position): 400 ATK/ 400 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/P.S. 4/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"At this time, the effect of Divine Melodious Stage activates! Once per turn, when I Special Summon a Melodious monster, I can add a Melodious monster from my Deck to my hand. Using this effect, I add Tam-Tam the Melodious Diva to my hand!"

With a new monster in hand, Yuzu turned her attention to her Pendulum Zones. "Now with the already Set Pendulum Scale-" she started, only to be cut off by her opponent.

"I activate one of the cards Set in my Dark Anchor Zone!" On command, the card behind the 4th Daughter flipped face up. A loud rumbling sound suddenly filled the air, overlapping with the fairy orchestra. Out of nowhere a massive iron anchor attached to a chain came crashing down through the roof and embedded itself into the stage. Yuzu looked up to see a gigantic stone with a face carved into its front, wrapped in the same chain attached to the anchor. The stone descended through the air with an ominous moan, until it landed behind the 4th Daughter. A glowing '-8' appeared next to it.

"Now, when this card is activated, I can add a Dark Anchor Monster from my Deck, Graveyard or Extra Deck to my hand." The 4th Daughter explained as she searched her deck. "I add Dark Anchor Effigy – Blazing Swords Angel."

Rin frowned, _"Your opponent is toying with you."_

"Are you sure?" Yuzu asked uncertainly.

The Synchro girl nodded. " _I lived with Yugo almost my whole life. I know when someone isn't dueling seriously."_

" _So she's going easy on Yuzu to find out her strategy."_ Serena summarized with a grimace.

"If that's the case," Yuzu said as she turned towards Ruri. "Maybe I should use _that_?"

Ruri looked at her with shock, before shaking her head. " _Maybe, but you've still got some ways to go."_

" _What are you guys talking about?"_ Serena asked. _"Does this have something to do with why you've been trying to hide something from me and Rin?"_

" _Actually it's 'Rin and I'."_ The green haired girl corrected, much to Serena's annoyance. _'Grammar Serena."_

" _Yeah whatever! Point is we know you two have been up to something and you've been terrible at hiding it so spill!"_

"I'll tell you later!" Yuzu shouted, trying to focus on dueling. "Look, Ruri's just been helping me practice some new skills for dueling, and I was just wondering if the right time to use them was now. Anyway, have a duel to focus on. Now, with the already set Pendulum Scale, I can summon monsters between Level 2 through 9!"

Alto and Arpeggio began to sing as a massive, spectral version of Yuya's Pendulum began swinging back and forth, Yuzu chanting simultaneously. "Melody of life, embody the essence of nature! Create a new miracle under the arc of light! Pendulum Shoukan! Descend now, my monsters!"

A portal opened up from the arc the Pendulum drew, before two lights, one red and one blue, came flying out. "First, Tam-Tam the Melodious Diva, followed by Choral the Melodious Diva!"

Appearing first on Yuzu's field was Tam-Tam, who joyfully whacked the gong she carried.

 **Tam-Tam the Melodious Diva (Attack Position): 1000 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Fairy/ Effect**

Next was a woman with pink hair decorated with white lotus flowers. She had a broader, more buxom build and wider hips than most of Yuzu's monsters. She was wearing a pearl pink dress, and in her hand she held up a golden sheet of music. On her back is a pair of clear, golden harp-shaped wings.

 **Choral the Melodious Diva (Attack Position): 1800 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 5/ P.S. 7/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Since Tam-Tam was Special Summoned while I control a Melodious monster, I add the Spell, Fusion, from my Deck to my hand. And then activate it, fusing together Tam-Tam and Quartet!"

The signature blue and orange fusion portal materialized above Yuzu's head. Grasping each other's hand, Tam-Tam and Quartet floated into the center of the portal. The two fairies transformed into a swirl of pink and green light as Yuzu chanted.

"Echoes of the soul, inspiration of the divine! With the guidance of the baton, gather your power! Yuugo Shoukan! Come forth! Prolific master of the written verse! Level 5! Haydina the Melodious Maestra!"

In a swirl of petals, Yuzu's Fusion monster descended onto the field singing a high-pitched opera note. Her beautiful pink and gold dress was a thin top that swirled around her upper body, with a frilly chamber-ball dress bottom extending to her knees. Her right shoulder was covered by a large white flower that was attached to the dress, while her left shoulder and arm were completely bare. In her right hand she carried a baton, and her left hand was decorated with a series of blue, green, red and yellow rings. She had long honey-blonde hair that was stacked into a swirling pile atop her head, a single long strand cascading over her exposed shoulder, while her back bore a pair of tiny white cherub wings. Smiling brightly and exposing a pair of solid pink eyes, she winked over at the 4th Daughter before posing next to Choral.

 **Haydina the Melodious Maestra (Attack Position): 2100 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 5/ Fairy/ Fusion/ Effect**

Yuzu looked at the screen of her duel disk and read the effects of Quartet before continuing. "Now, since Quartet was used as Material for the Summon of a Melodious Extra Deck monster, her effect activates! I add from my Deck to my hand one Melodious Songstress monster, and that monster is Mezzo-Soprano."

" _I figured you'd at that one to your hand."_ Ruri watched as Yuzu took the card into her hand. She had seen that card a lot recently in her and Yuzu's secret time away from the others. Yuzu didn't have the other cards in her hand to use it just yet, but Ruri could tell she was preparing for later.

"Better to be safe than sorry. In any case, the card might come in handy." Yuzu commented with a grateful smile before gesturing to her Fusion Monster, "Haydina's effect increases the ATK of all other monsters I control by three hundred for each monster used in her Fusion Summon. Therefore Choral gains 600 ATK!"

 **Choral the Melodious Diva: 1800 ATK-2400 ATK**

"Battle! Choral attacks you directly!" Yuzu commanded. Choral took a deep breath before belting out a loud, high-pitched note that resonated with the voices of many. The wave of sound traveled towards her opponent before…

"Salvation Rock no Dark Anchor Kouka!" The 4th Daughter declared as the eyes on the gigantic stone began glowing red. "When I'm to receive damage, I can send a face-up Dark Anchor Monster from my Extra Deck to my Graveyard instead!"

Yuzu gasped as the spirit of Guiding Light reappeared before emitting another flash of light. The blinding force of the light seemed to block Choral's attack, disappearing once the waves of sound had stopped.

" _Face-up from the Extra Deck."_ Rin remarked in awe. _"So, that means Dark Anchors go the Extra Deck when they leave the field, just like Pendulum Monsters."_

" _And don't forget, she still has one more card in that Dark Anchor Zone of hers."_ Added Serena. She had never seen card's like Dark Anchors before, so there was no advice she could give Yuzu. At the very least, she could tell the cards were similar to Pendulum Monsters, and that they involved negative numbers. _"Who knows what she's capable of."_

"It's okay, I've got this. Besides, you've forgotten one big detail." Yuzu pointed to her opponent's nearly blank field, smiling happily. "You still don't have any monsters, while I still have Haydina! And now she attacks you directly!"

The blonde fairy waved her baton around, creating a beautiful array of multi-colored music notes in the air before pointing at Yuzu's unflinching opponent. The notes flew at the duelist before bursting into a shower of light and throwing her back.

 **4th Daughter's LP: 4000 – 1900**

The 4th Daughter didn't even grunt from the damage. Instead she stood back up and nonchalantly brushed off her shoulder. "Well, that was a decent attack." The duelist spoke with a mocking tone, "But where I'm from that wouldn't get you any points."

Yuzu grimaced. She had been able to take the lead so far, but her opponent didn't even acknowledge her advantage. Going over the stats in her head, apart from Salvation Rock and another card in her 'Dark Anchor Zone," this 'Fourth Daughter' didn't have many options.

" _Choral has almost 3000 ATK, and as long as I control her and Haydina, Divine Melodious Stage can't be destroyed. It'll also increase my LP by at least 500 during the End Phase, so I have good defense for now. But why do I get the feeling something is about to happen…"_ Yuzu thought.

Her counterparts nodded, having similar feelings. "I set a card. During my End Phase, Divine Melodious Stage increases my Life Points by five hundred for each Melodious monster I control." Yuzu took a deep breath as ribbons of music swirled around her and increased her Life Points.

 **Yuzu LP: 4000-5000**

"With this I end my turn."

The 4th Daughter frowned. "That's it? That's all you're doing during in your turn? And here I was hoping that the people of the Pendulum Dimension would be somewhat decent." she scoffed. "But then again," she said smugly, "Nothing can overcome what Cronus-sama has bestowed upon us. The people of the Duel Temple are invincible."

" _Duel Temple? Cronus-sama?"_ Ruri repeated in confusion, _"What is she talking about?"_

" _Well based on the term 'sama', I'm assuming this Cronus guy is her boss, and the Duel Temple feels like some kind of cult."_ Suggested Rin, who didn't sound too sure of her answer.

"Watashi no turn!" Yuzu's opponent shouted as she drew and added a card to her hand without looking at it. "I activate the other card in my Dark Anchor Zone, Dark Anchor Effigy – Rebirth Pool!"

The stage below Yuzu's feet began to tremble, before a large anchor burst forth from underneath, a series of chains attached. The anchor levitated into the sky, pulling the chains and something else through the hole onto the stage; an iron basin, filled with black water. As the anchor pulled the basin into the sky, Yuzu notices an iron skull with ruby eyes and a pair of angel wings decorating the surface. The anchor continued to ascend until it reached the roof of the theater, and a glowing '8' appeared next to the basin.

"When Rebirth Pool is activated, I can add a Dark Anchor Monster from anywhere to my Extra Deck." 4th Daughter explained as Guiding Light popped out of her Graveyard, "With this effect, I return Guiding Light to my Extra Deck."

"So you can send it back to your Graveyard to protect yourself again?" Yuzu guessed.

"No," her opponent replied automatically. "I only did that for fun. I don't need another card in my Extra Deck, I just wanted to show you how pointless you are."

Taking a single card from her hand, the eyes on both her Dark Anchor monsters began to glow. "Using the Magnitude 8 Rebirth Pool and the Magnitude Negative 8 Salvation Rock, I perform a Dark Anchor Summon!" She declared, voice reverberating like a god.

"Dark Anchor Summon!?" The four girls repeated in shock.

The world seemed to become silent as Rebirth Pool became enveloped in a column of dark red light which went down to Salvation Rock. The anchor that had dragged the gargantuan stone removed itself from the ground and was pulled upward by an unknown force. Meanwhile that same force took effect on the darkened pool, dragging it down as Salvation Rock ascended. The deafening silence was ended the moment the two monsters collided in the center of the column….

And a massive burst of energy exploded outward from the two monsters, bathing the entire field in a deep blood-red light.

"This light!" Yuzu gasped as she shielded her eyes from the crimson flash.

"Sink! Anchor of my Soul," Chanted the 4th Daughter, her eyes and the pink trim on her attire turning the same red as the light she had created. "Delve into the shadowy depths and unearth the despair that lies beneath!"

Salvation Rock and Rebirth Pool began moaning as six chains of black energy shot out from their eyes and reached upward. Two of the chains opened up a portal, filled with the red energy, while the others entered. A loud **_CLANG_** echoed throughout the world as the chains exited the hole, pulling something else down. Wrapped up in the chains, a monster with white hair, pale statue-like skin, covered in orange and green armor, descended. On its back were a set of burning angel wings, bound by the chains, and in each hand she wielded a sword, each bathed in roaring flames. Around her neck was affixed a heavy black chain while anchor shaped earrings dangled below each of her ears. The eyes of the angel lit up before she easily broke free of her chains, spreading the fiery wings.

"Dark Anchor!" Shouted the 4th Daughter as her creature swung her weapons around in a frightening display of power and skill. "Descend onto this world, Level 9! Dark Anchor Effigy – Blazing Swords Angel!"

 **Dark Anchor Effigy – Blazing Swords Angel (Attack Position): 2900 ATK/ 2400 DEF/ FIRE/ Level 9/ Magnitude: -9/ Fairy/ Dark Anchor/ Effect**

With the monster now free, the chains disappeared before Salvation Rock and Rebirth Pool returned to their respective positions and the red light vanished from the field.

Yuzu and the girls gaped at the fiery angel in shock and awe, unable to believe that Yuzu's opponent had done this powerful summon. Somewhat disoriented from the light, Yuzu stuttered out…"How is this-"

The pinkette was cut off by her opponent's smug laughter. "I did tell you that this was similar to Pendulum Summoning." The 4th Daughter gloated, "But the Dark Anchor is far more powerful! Not only can I summon multiple monsters from my hand or Extra Deck, but if I wish I can summon them from my Graveyard as well! Of course," she paused, fiddling with her hair, "the monsters Dark Anchor summoned must be summoned face-down if they are not Dark Anchor Monsters, and I cannot summon monsters with Levels in between the Magnitudes of the monsters in my Dark Anchor Zone, but when I can summon a Level Nine monster with barely any effort, I'm not complaining."

" _She can summon them from the Graveyard, and have the monsters be face-down."_ A speechless Yuzu thought, words unable to describe the shock running through her. A summon more powerful then Pendulum Summoning, and one more broken that that. When she had first seen Yuya Pendulum Summon all those years ago, she had been as surprised as the audience. But the shock from that moment had nothing on what she had just seen.

" _Well…."_ Serena trailed, trying to come up with a positive. _"At least she can't Dark Anchor Summon during your turn, so that's a plus."_

"And in case you're wondering I can do this during your turn too," the 4th Daughter added, sounding rather blasé about the fact. "Not that you'll have another turn anyway. Blazing Swords Angel's effect! When this is the only card Dark Anchor summoned from my hand, the effects of all non-Dark Anchor Cards on the field are negated, as well as destroyed! And for every card destroyed with this effect, this monster gains 100 ATK!"

Roaring fiercely, Swords Angel twirled her blades around, conjuring up a tornado of fire. The crackling of the flames grew loud as it began to move around, burning and destroying Yuzu's stage.

" _This is bad!"_ Shouted Rin, _"You'll be defenseless!"_

"The Quick-Play Spell, Prestissimo!" Countered Yuzu, trying to limit the number of cards destroyed by Swords Angel. "I excavate the two cards on top of my deck and add all Melodious monsters revealed by this effect to my hand while shuffling the rest into my deck!"

The flames continued destroying the stage, scattering the fairy orchestra and burning down the cushioned seats as the two cards on top of Yuzu's deck slid out. Taking them in hand, Yuzu looked down and grimaced at the first one a Spell card (one that she could have used last turn in fact). Staring at the second one, Yuzu gasped to see that it was….

"Neither of these cards are Melodious monsters, however one of them is a monster with an errata that says it always treated as a Melodious card, so only one of them is added to my hand." The Pendulum girl shouted over the roar of the flames, her opponent flashing her a look that said she didn't care.

Choral and Haydina tried to escape the cyclone of fire, but it was all for not. They too were swallowed up by the flames, as were Alto and Arpeggio, who only stood helplessly as the vortex swung around and hit them. The field around the two shattered, returning them to a now burnt and blackened hospital hallway, still surrounded by the wall of flame-like energy.

"Choral is a Pendulum Monster." a breathless Yuzu explained, "So she goes to the Extra Deck. In addition, when she does, I can add a face-up Melodious Pendulum Monster from my Extra Deck to my hand. So Alto returns to my hand!"

The 4th Daughter smirked once again, "Maybe, but the rest of Blazing Swords Angel's effect resolves. Because there were six cards destroyed by this effect, Swords Angel gains 600 ATK!" She gestured towards her fiery monster, who roared with power as her strength increased.

 **Dark Anchor Effigy – Blazing Swords Angel: 2900 ATK-3500 ATK**

"And now," she continued, placing a card in her duel disk's Spell and Trap Zone "I activate the Spell Dark Effigy Arrangement! I return Salvation Rock and Rebirth Pool to my hand, and then, using this effect, Special Summon Rebirth Pool while activating Salvation Rock in my Dark Anchor Zone!"

The cards briefly disappeared from the field, before reappearing. Salvation Rock stayed in place while Rebirth Pool had positioned itself next to Swords Angel.

 **Dark Anchor Effigy – Rebirth Pool (Attack Position): 2800 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WATER/ Level -10/ Magnitude: 8/ Aqua/ Dark Anchor/ Normal**

"Battle," commanded the 4th Daughter. "Blazing Swords Angel attacks you directly!"

Yuzu had no time to react as the living statue dashed forwards and slammed the hilts of its burning blades against her body with great force. The blow knocked her off her feet and slammed her into the burning wall. The second she came into contact, what felt like thousands of volts of electricity surged through her entire body.

"AAAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!"

…

"My turn!" Declared Yuya as he ripped the top card off his deck, his Speed Counters rising once more.

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 6**

"I activate the Spell, Pendulum Exchange! By discarding a Pendulum monster from my hand, I can draw cards from my Deck equal to that monster's Scale." Yuya explained before dumping Cheermole into his graveyard and drawing again.

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 7**

" _Yes, with this_ …" Looking at his current hand, Yuya saw that there was something he could do to turn things around. "With the already set Pendulum Scale, I Pendulum Summon! Reappear, Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon! Entermate Card Bird! And from my hand, Harmonizing Magician!"

Yuya's signature dragon roared magnificently as it reappeared, accompanied by cartoonish looking bird. Joining the duo, a female humanoid monster joined in the fray. Formerly known as the card Tuning Magician, Harmonizing had grown stronger after the Standard Dimension's rebirth as the Pendulum Dimension. Giggling as she twirled an improved version of her tuning staff around the magician landed atop Yuya's dragon.

 **Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon (Attack Position): 2500 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Entermate Card Bird (Attack Position): 800 ATK/ 1600 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ P.S. 5/ Winged Beast/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Harmonizing Magician (Attack Position): 0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 8/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 8**

Maneuvering his D-Wheel in front of his opponent, Yuya pointed towards his Magician. "When Harmonizing Magician is Pendulum Summoned, I can Special Summon another Magician Pendulum Monster from my Deck in Defense Position. However, that monster will be banished once it leaves the field! Come, Iris Magician!"

Harmonizing Magician flicked the tip of her staff, causing a small hum to resonate as the orbs on her attire flashed a blue light. Appearing from the flash was a young mage in red who resembled Odd-Eyes, even with the appropriate case of dual-colored eyes. In his had he carried a sword with a hilt that resembled the dragon's trademark eyes.

 **Iris Magician: 1500 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 8/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 9**

"Now I Normal Summon Entermate Trump Girl!"

In a flash of light, a young girl in a goofy looking outfit covered in card suits joined Yuya's group of monsters.

 **Entermate Trump Girl: 200 ATK/ 200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 2/ P.S. 4/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Harmonizing Magician is a Tuner, and the data on his deck confirms Trump Girl is capable of performing a Fusion Summon." Murmured Yuya's opponent, anticipating his next move.

"Trump Girl's effect activates! Using Trump Girl and monsters that I control as Material, I perform a Fusion Summon. I fuse together Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon, Trump Girl and Card Bird!"

The young mage giggled as she waved her wand over the card-winged bird and the red dragon. The three of them floated up into the blue and orange Fusion Portal, and merged in a spiral of red, yellow and blue as Yuya chanted.

"Dragon with dichromatic eyes! Merge with the mysteries of the dark and the swiftness of the wind and become a new miracle! Yuugo Shoukan! Come forth! Brilliant dragon with reflective eyes of crystal! Prism-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!"

Breaking free from the spiral came a dragon which resembled Odd-Eyes, but instead of red scales it was covered in transparent crystals from head to toe. Two thin prisms jutted from the sides of its head and back, resembling horns and wings. One of the dragon's eyes were blue, while the other was replaced with a sparkly crystal. Prism-Eyes roared as it appeared beside Yuya, light reflecting off the crystals that covered its body.

 **Prism-Eyes Pendulum Dragon (Attack Position): 3000 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ P.S. 1/ Dragon/ Fusion/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 10**

"When Prism-Eyes is Special Summoned, the effects of all cards you control are negated!" Prism-Eyes loudly screeched as the crystals on its body glowed brightly, releasing beams of light that cut through the frigid winds. The winter storm vanished as Fitzgerald moaned, full of anguish as its effects disappeared.

"Next, I tune Level 4 Iris Magician with Level 4 Harmonizing Magician!" Shouted Yuya as he continued his momentum. The female magician disappeared into four bright stars before becoming a set of four rings that enveloped Iris Magician.

"Holy light that watches over this world, preside in the dragon's eye and guide all toward salvation! Synchro Shoukan! Come forth, Level 8! Shining-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!"

Appearing in a flash of light came another dragon with a body similar to Odd-Eyes. This one was covered in brilliant white plates of armor, two golden blade-like wings sprouting from the sides. Instead of horns, a halo-like crest branched out from the dragon's skull which encompassed the back of its head. The eyes of the holy beast where a beautiful shade of blue and gold which shined brilliantly.

 **Shining-Eyes Pendulum Dragon (Attack Position): 3000 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 8/ P.S. 6/ Dragon/ Synchro/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 11**

"Battle! Shining-Eyes Pendulum Dragon, attack Blizzard King Fitzgerald! Holy Burst!"

Shining-Eyes opened its maw and shot forth a gold and white blast of light that spiraled towards the Dark Synchro monster. The creature's owner revealed the card in his hand as the blast impacted his monster.

"I activate the effect of Blizzard Gardna in my hand! By sending this card to the Graveyard, I negate battle damage!"

A small lizard-like man wearing a deep blue scarf and holding a massive shield decorated with a white snowflake appeared in front of the unknown Duelist as Fitzgerald was destroyed, Shining-Eyes' blast piercing through it.

Yuri clicked his tongue in annoyance. _"You were so close there. If he hadn't of had that card in his hand you'd have gotten rid of that monster."_

The Riding Duelist smiled sinisterly. "When Fitzgerald is destroyed, all cards on the opponent's field are destroyed, and Fitzgerald Special Summons itself from the graveyard! Be gone!"

A black and purple portal opened up beside the D-Wheeler's bike, and from it Fitzgerald exited, accompanied by a series of shards of ice. Turning towards Yuya, the ice shards leaped towards the boy's field and impaled each and every one of Yuya's cards, turning them into nothing more than flecks of light.

 **Blizzard King Fitzgerald (Attack Position): 2500 ATK/ 2500 DEF/ WATER/ Level -5/ Fiend/ Dark Synchro/ Effect**

 **Unknown's Speed Counters: 8**

"When Shining-Eyes is destroyed, I can Special Summon a Pendulum Monster from my Graveyard. Revive, Cheermole!"

A pink mole in a green and yellow cheerleader's outfit hiding her face behind a pair of blue pom-poms materialized on the field as Yuya's Speed Counters reached the maximum capacity.

 **Entermate Cheermole (Defense Position): 600 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 2/ P.S. 5/ Beast/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 12**

"In addition, Shining-Eyes places itself in the Pendulum Zone. Prism-Eyes also transitions into the Pendulum Zone while allowing me to add a face-up Pendulum Monster from my Extra Deck to my hand. With this, Harmonizing Magician returns to my hand." explained Yuya as the two dragon's appeared besides him in two columns of light, hovering above a glowing '1' and '6' respectively.

"With this, I end my turn." With the turn over, the effects of Blizzard Sanctuary returned, and with them came the freezing winds.

" _Hey Yuya I gotta ask. Now that you've got all the Speed Counters, what are you gonna use them for?"_ Looking back down at the card for Speed World Mach 2 on the duel disk, Yugo saw that Yuya had more than a few options with the Speed Counters and yet, the tomato head wasn't utilizing any of them.

"You'll see," he answered playfully. "Next turn, the real show begins!"

Yuto smiled at his Pendulum Counterpart's confidence. Having been a part of Yuya the longest, he'd learned to tell when he was planning to do something dramatic and grand."

"Hmph, there won't be a next turn for you!" Scoffed the unknown D-Wheeler as he drew and placed the card in his hand without looking at it.

 **Unknown's Speed Counters: 9**

"I activate the effect of Blizzard Sanctuary and add Blizzard Spearman to my hand. And then, I battle! Blizzard King Fitzgerald attacks Entermate Cheermole!"

The icy demon turned towards the cheerleading mole, its master grabbing the copy of Spearman he added to his hand.

"The effect of Blizzard Spearman activates! By sending it to the Graveyard, this turn all Blizzard monsters I control can inflict piercing damage!"

The spirit of a white reptilian warrior holding an icicle tipped spear entered the body of Fitzgerald as it fired a series of razor sharp icicles from its tendrils. The frigid shards rocketed towards Cheermole and impaled her.

Quick to act, Yuya pointed towards the crystalline dragon hovering beside him. "Prism-Eyes no Pendulum Kouka! Once per turn, I can make battle damage zero! "

Prism-Eyes' crystals glowed brightly as the storm of icicles rained down on Yuya, only to be stopped by a barrier of light. The D-Wheel maneuvered his D-Wheel to pick up an Action Card….

Except the card was High Dive, which couldn't help him in this scenario. The duelist gritted his teeth and whispered furiously, "Oh when he goes for one he gets what he wants but everyone else gets the short end of the stick. However, you forgot when Fitzgerald destroys a monster you take damage equal to that monster's ATK. So you still take 600 damage!"

Fitzgerald fired another bolt of electricity at Yuya's D-Wheel, and this time the rider atop was unable to evade out of the way in time. The attack hit right next to the motorbike, nearly sending it spiraling outwards.

 **Yuya's LP: 1800-1200**

" _That the best you can do?"_ Jeered Yugo, who proceeded to stick his tongue out at Yuya's opponent.

" _Seems like you did have everything under control."_ Said Yuto, eyes turned towards Yuya.

The red-headed boy smiled. "You didn't think I went through all that to get Prism-Eyes and Shining-Eyes into my Pendulum Zones without having a plan?" he asked playfully.

" _So you did summon them for a reason. Clever,"_ praised Yuri.

"Turn end," the rider bitterly whispered.

"Now, The Fun is Just Getting Started!" Yuya shouted as high as he could, "Ore no TURN!"

…

Yuzu dropped from the wall and landed with a thud, unable to move. The blow from Swords Angel had caused massive amounts of pain, she found herself lucky she wasn't coughing up blood.

 **Yuzu's LP: 5000-1500**

" _Yuzu!"_ The three girls shouted in unison, concerned for their friends. Serena looked towards Yuzu's opponent and saw a small smile forming as her lips began to curl upwards.

" _You dirty little,"_ the Fusion girl growled, giving the 4th Daughter a fierce glare. _"You're lucky I'm not the one dueling, or else you would've lost a long time ago!"_

"Oh please, you'd be in the exact same position you friend is in!"

Serena, Rin and Ruri's jaws dropped in shock when Yuzu's opponent responded to Serena's taunt.

" _Y-you can see us?"_ Ruri stuttered out.

"Yup, whole time actually."

" _Then why didn't you say anything earlier?"_ asked Rin.

"Well, was I supposed to? I mean, anything not part of the Duel Temple isn't worth anything, but you three exemplify that!" Pointing towards the three girls, she continued to jeer. "None of you have your own bodies, you're basically just ghosts in this world!"

" _Keep on talking, I dare you?"_ Serena threatened. _"See where that gets you!"_

"Oh, how quaint. You, who can only interact through someone else actually thinks she can do something."" The 4th Daughter laughed mockingly. "The three of you lost any say in life the moment you got stuck inside that girl's body! You're nothing but apparitions cursed to wander this world, dreaming about what might have been!"

Though she tried to remain strong, Serena did find some truth in the girl's words. For years she had been trapped inside the walls of Academia, then just when she was finally starting to live, she was nerve gassed, dragged back to Academia and had a parasite implanted in her head and forcibly brainwashed. And just when she got freed from said brainwashing, she ended up stuck in a glass tube as her friends attempted to save the world and she dissolved into nothingness. Serena had never gotten a real chance to be live a life without war, know a family who genuinely cared for her, a real life.

The Synchro girl had similar feelings. For years all she had was Yugo and their dream. There was no other way for them to get a better life for themselves other than by winning the Friendship Cup. But before she could get the chance to live her dream, she was kidnapped by Academia and stuck in a tower for months before finally reuniting with Yugo. But the cruel hands of fate had other plans, under the parasite's control she was forced to destroy their D-Wheel and spit on everything they had ever cherished, and ultimately she was stuck watching other people live life while she never got the chance to live hers.

And poor Ruri was nearly on the brink of tears. Between the three girls she had lost the most; her home, her brother, her friends, her boyfriend. There were so many nights when she awoke from horrible nightmares, traumatic recollections of the war and all the horrible pain and suffering that had befallen her home. Memories of the duels she was forced to fight for Academia, the night Yuri abducted her, watching as Yuto was dragged into darkness…. Though she was glad that her loved ones had the chance to repair their lives, there would always be the pain in her heart of never being able to be with them.

"Face it, you're nothing!" the 4th Daughter laughed, head thrown back as she reveled in her impending victory.

"Stop." Came the soft whisper of Yuzu's voice. The four people looked at the girl's body as she slowly picked herself up. "It's true that Ruri, Rin and Serena have lost their own bodies, but that doesn't mean their ghosts!"

The 4th Daughter was about to comment before Yuzu cut her off, not letting her get a word out. "In the time before they lost their physical presence, they've touched people's lives. Kurosaki and Ruri's friends in Heartland still cherish and miss her, holding her memory in their hearts. The children who lived in Rin's orphanage still look up to her like a sister and wish to be just like her. And Serena has impacted the Lancers as a comrade and as family! So long as they're never forgotten, they're never truly gone!" Yuzu declared, steadfast and meaning every word.

The three girls could do nothing but smile at Yuzu's statements.

"Battle!" growled the 4th Daughter. "Rebirth Pool attacks you directly!"

The large tub of water moaned as it fired a beam from its ruby eyes. Yuzu unflinching starred the creature down as she slammed a card on her duel disk without looking.

"When an opponent's monster attacks during the turn I took battle damage and a Special Summoned Melodious monster is destroyed, I can activate this card from my hand! Unfinished Score!"

A Trap Card depicting multiple pieces of sheet music, must of which unfinished appeared before releasing a plethora of music notes that swarmed around Yuzu. "For the rest of this turn, all damage I take is halved!"

The notes formed a barrier around Yuzu as Rebirth Pool's attack drew closer. Though it blocked the blast from getting through, it still managed to force Yuzu back a few feet.

 **Yuzu LP: 1500-100**

The 4th Daughter clicked her tongue in annoyance. She had been so close! Regardless, she still had the advantage, and right now she was sure Yuzu couldn't turn things around. _"With Dark Anchor Reincarnation, I can end her futile resistance and finish her on my next turn,"_ she said to herself. "I set a card and end my turn."

Yuzu closed her eyes as she placed the tips of her fingers atop her deck. _"I can't lose this duel. If I do, then I'll be no better than I was during the Dimensional War. I won't go back to being nothing more than a damsel in distress. I will become stronger, I won't hide behind others to fight for me. I will win, not just for me, but for the three hearts inside me."_

"ATASHI NO TURN!" she exclaimed, drawing the card from her deck. Without missing a beat, she grabbed two from her hand and revealed them to her opponent.

"With the Scale 3 Alto the Melodious Songstress and the Scale 8 En Angel – Hana, I set the Pendulum Scale!" Slamming the cards on the edges of her duel disk, a rainbow 'PENDULUM" brightly appearing on the blade.

The 4th Daughter nearly dropped her hand in shock. "En…. Impossible! The only duelist who had ever used En cards were-"

"Ray." Yuzu finished. "Just as the three inside me are not truly gone, Akaba Ray's memory still lives on!"

The two columns of light manifested besides Yuzu. Alto giggled as she ascended, accompanied by an angelic monster whose face resembled Yuzu's own. Her eyes were a bright gold and her white hair, apart from two pink side tails falling on the sides of her face, was tied up in two pigtails, clipped down by a pair of blue flower clips. Her short-sleeved yellow dress fell a little past her knees, exposing a pair of blue Greek sandals while a pink sash was wrapped around her waist. Snaking around her right arms was a pink ribbon with flower embroidery while a silver necklace hung from her neck, sporting a pink gem shaped like a stylized 'pi' symbol. On her back were a pair of strong white feathered wings, a select few ones being pink that created a shape of a flower on each.

"With this, I can simultaneously summons monsters between Level Four and Seven!" The trademark pendulum began appeared in the sky and began swaying. Back and forth, it traced an arc in the sky that seemed to remove the dark presence that had plagued the duel.

"Melody of life, embody the essence of nature! Create a new miracle under the arc of light! Pendulum Shoukan! Descend now, my monsters!" Yuzu chanted before three lights descended from the portal. "Return from my Extra Deck, Quartet, Choral, Arpeggio!"

The trio of monsters appeared, their voices harmonizing together. Feeling her strength returning to her, Yuzu smiled as she faced her opponent.

 **Quartet the Melodious Songstress (Attack Position): 400 ATK/ 400 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/P.S. 4/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Choral the Melodious Diva (Attack Position): 1800 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 5/ P.S. 7/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Arpeggio the Melodious Diva (Attack Position): 1200 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 7/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Two level fours," murmured the 4th Daughter. "What are you gonna do, Xyz Summon?" She laughed.

Yuzu smiled triumphantly. "That's exactly what I'm gonna do."

"Eh?" Everyone else, with the exception of Ruri, muttered with surprise.

"I overlay Level 4 Arpeggio the Melodious Diva and Quartet the Melodious Songstress!" Declared Yuzu. Her two monsters grabbed hands before jumping forwards, transforming into streams of light that drained into the center of a black and gold galaxy.

"Fairy who composes songs of the heart, raise your baton and touch the souls of all with your supreme genius!" Xyz Shoukan!" Yuzu chanted as a pillar of lightning shot forth from the portal. "Come forth, Rank 4! Vivaldina the Melodious Maestra!"

The portal disappeared, revealing a monster with long black hair tied into pony tails on the sides of her head by two bass cleft shaped hair-clips. Painted on each of her cheeks were a black eight notes while green eye liner was painted over her solid, glittering gold eyes. Her long, thin black dress extended to her ankles, and the sleeves were translucent. Large red ribbons covered the front of her chest, the back of the dress and the tops of her red shoes, decorated with a pattern of golden music notes. In her right hand she carried around a wooden conductor's baton that sprinkled shimmering pink dust wherever she waved it. Laughing gracefully, she spread a pair of wings that resembled ethereal black harps before landing in front of Yuzu, a pair of yellow Overlay Units encircling her like miniature suns.

 **Vivaldina the Melodious Maestra (Defense Position): 1800 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Rank 4/ OVU: 2/ Fairy/ Xyz/ Effect**

Serena and Rin starred at Yuzu's new monster in shock. Ruri, who was currently smiling at Yuzu's monster with wide-eyes, had been teaching the girl how to Xyz Summon. It made perfect sense, the two of them had requested some 'girl time' just for them for weeks, and with what Ruri said when she added Mezzo-Soprano to her hand, it explained everything.

" _How did we not figure this out immediately?"_ Serena mumbled, still in shock.

" _In hindsight- wow, I feel like an idiot."_ Muttered Rin, mentally kicking herself in the knee.

Ruri steeped next to Yuzu with a smile on her face. _"Not bad for your first Xyz Summon,"_ she praised. _"I see those lessons were well spent."_

"Well I had a great teacher."

" _Um hello! Is anyone gonna tell me what's going on?!"_ Demanded Serena, angry at the fact the two had been hiding this from her.

"I'll tell you once I finish this duel. Now, since Quartet was used as Material, her effect activates! With it I add Soprano the Melodious Songstress to my hand. And now, Vivaldina's effect! All Fairy-type monsters I control gain 200 ATK for every Overlay Unit she has! With two, all three gain 400 ATK!"

 **Vivaldina the Melodious Maestra: 1800–2200 ATK**

 **Choral the Melodious Diva: 1800–2200 ATK**

"And now," she continued, not losing steam, "Since I control a Melodious monster, I can summon this monster from my hand! Come, Mezzo-Soprano the Melodious Songstress!"

A new fairy twirled through the air on a set of black sixteenth note-shaped wings, singing a clear operatic falsetto. She wore an elegant black and yellow dress with turquoise buttons up the front and a pearl necklace wrapped around her throat. Her eyes were a clear blue and covered by a pair of glasses, a strand of her long, wavy aqua-marine hair over her left eye.

 **Mezzo-Soprano the Melodious Songstress (Attack Position): 1500–1900 ATK/ 1000–1400 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Fairy/ Effect**

"Mezzo-Soprano's effect! Once per turn, she can change the levels of all Melodious monsters I control to a level between four and seven! I choose to make Mezzo-Soprano and Choral both Level 7!"

Smiling shyly, Mezzo-Soprano tossed her hair back and spread her wings, before belting out a middle-pitched note which raised both her and Choral's levels.

 **Mezzo-Soprano the Melodious Songstress: Level 4–Level 7**

 **Choral the Melodious Diva: Level 5–Level 7**

" _Two level seven monsters."_ Rin whispered, anticipating Yuzu's next move.

"The stage is almost set! I overlay Level 7 Mezzo-Soprano the Melodious Songstress and Choral the Melodious Diva!"

Choral offered Mezzo-Soprano her hand. A slight blush on her face, Mezzo-Soprano took it before they proceeded to mirror what had been done by Quartet and Arpeggio. The two lights fell into the portal, a tornado of feathers erupting outwards seconds later.

"Angel singing alongside the birds with brilliant feathers, spread your wings and deliver divine inspiration! Xyz Shoukan! Now on stage, the song of salvation! Rank 7! Wing Diva the Melodious Choir!"

The tornado of feathers dispersed to reveal the new Xyz Monster. Wing Diva had long grey hair that fell down to her ankles, encased in a golden hair net that was inlaid with several rubies, emeralds, sapphires and yellow diamonds. Her blue eyess were lined with green make-up while an elegant necklace laid flat against the base of her neck. Her yellow dress was large, with a slender waist, puffed up sleeves, pads over her waist and rear, black music notes covering every inch. Streams of fabric fell from the bottom of the dress, resembling the tail feathers of a bird. But her most outstanding feature was the pair of white feathered wings on her back, with a few large ones colored black, making the wings resemble the keys of a piano. Tossing her head back, Wing Diva smiled and flawlessly sang a wide scale of notes.

 **Wing Diva the Melodious Choir (Attack Position): 2000 ATK–2400 ATK/ 1000 DEF–1400 DEF/ LIGHT/ Rank 7/ OVU: 2/ Fairy/ Xyz/ Effect**

"This monster," Yuzu spoke softly, "is what's going to help me win this duel." She gestured towards Vivaldina. "Once per turn, Vivaldina's second effect lets me draw a card by detaching an Overlay Unit!"

Absorbing one of the orbs of light, Vivaldina pointed her baton towards Yuzu's deck, shooting a golden beam of light from the end as if it was a wand. The cards lit up as she drew a card and smiled.

"Wing Diva's effect." Yuzu grinned, "By using one Overlay Unit, Wing Diva lets me Special Summon a Melodious monster from my hand or Graveyard each turn. With this effect, I summon Motzarta the Melodious Maestra!"

Wing Diva absorbed an overlay unit into her chest before singing a low pitched note. Yuzu's strongest main deck monster, a tall fairy with solid blue eyes, curly grey hair, a beautiful red dress with golden music notes and a pair of butterfly wings on her back appeared on the field, giving a graceful bow.

 **Motzarta the Melodious Maestra (Attack Position): 2600–2800 ATK/ 2000–2200 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 8/ Fairy/ Effect**

"And now, Wing Diva's other effect activates!" Yuzu declared, "Every time a Melodious monster is Special Summoned, I inflict five-hundred damage to my opponent! Go, Elegant Surge!"

The near angelic monster brought her hands to her diaphragm and began singing a sustained, high-pitched note. A sphere of light and music notes formed just in front of her mouth, before she flapped her wings, her singing voice now doubled in volume, and sent the orb flying towards Yuzu's opponent. It burst into an explosion of notes that knocked her back.

 **4th Daughter's LP: 1900-1400**

"I will not lose to you! To do so would be to dishonor the Temple!" The 4th Daughter shrieked, anger resonating in her voice. "Trap card, Dark Anchor Reincarnation activate! I return one Dark Anchor Monster from my field to my hand, and then Special Summon a Dark Anchor monster from my hand, treated as if it was Dark Anchor summoned! I return Blazing Swords Angel to my hand in order to summon her again!"

Despite her command, her set card had not flipped up. Looking down, she now saw that the card was instead covered up by a pink aura.

"Why isn't my Trap activating?" the 4th Daughter exclaimed.

"Hana's Pendulum Effect prevents my opponent from activating cards or effects in response to the effects of monsters I control that were Special Summoned from the Extra Deck." Yuzu explained, secretly relishing in her opponent's shocked face.

"Motzarta's monster effect! I special summon from my hand, Soprano the Melodious Songstress!"

The tall fairy conjured up a wooden baton and waved it around before firing a green beam of light. A second lady, a fairy with long red hair and a simple white dress covered by blue plates decorated with orange patterns appeared on the field, singing a high pitched note. And of course, Wing Diva's effect kicked in, dealing more damage to the 4th daughter.

 **Soprano the Melodious Songstress (Attack Position): 1400–1600 ATK/ 1400–1600 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Fairy/ Effect**

 **4th Daughter's LP: 1400-900**

"And now, give it up for Soprano's monster effect! With Soprano and Motzarta as the Material, I perform a Fusion Summon without the use of a Fusion card!"

Soprano and Motzarta began singing, their clear voices echoing loudly as they spiraled into the fusion portal in a blue and yellow swirl.

"Angel's song! Supreme genius! With the guidance of the baton, gather your power! Yuugo Shoukan!" Yuzu brought her palms together and slammed down, a look of strength shining in her eyes. "Now come here to the stage! Sing the song of victory! Bloom Diva the Melodious Choir!"

A pink flower bud appeared from the portal, opening up and releasing a storm of petals. From the center of the blossom, a girl in a periwinkle dress with wispy lavender hair and a flowing ribbon taking on the silhouette of butterfly wings stood up, singing a clear and beautiful song that soothed the soul.

 **Bloom Diva the Melodious Choir (Attack Position): 1000–1200 ATK/ 2000–2200 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 6/ Fairy/ Fusion/ Effect**

 **4th Daughter's LP: 900-400**

" _Alright!"_ Serena smiled. Knowing Bloom Diva was on the field, a victory for Yuzu was in hand.

" _But,"_ Rin wondered, _"You could have just won by going straight into Bloom Diva after you added Soprano to your hand and using it and Vivaldina as material. Why did you go through all of this?"_

"I was making a point." Yuzu simply stated, much to her counterparts' confusion. "I was saying that, despite not having a physical presence anymore, the three of you are not ghosts."

Yuzu's words slowly dawned on the three as they came to realize what she was saying. Though they were her cards, Yuzu was playing in a way that combined each of their styles; Ruri's Xyz Summoning and swarming, Rin's effect damage tactics, and though she had used Fusion before meeting Serena, it was through battle damage that she was about to win.

"I am sorry that the three of you have had to live like this these past few years, but so long as I'm alive, I will keep the memories of you in your loved ones hearts!" She proclaimed, before pointing at her ace monster, her opponent gritting her teeth with fury.

"Battle! Bloom Diva attack Dark Anchor Effigy – Blazing Swords Angel! Reflect Shout!"

Starting slow, Bloom Diva began raising her voice as she shot forth a blast of spiraling green winds towards the Dark Anchor monster. The wind strength forced the sentient statue back, paralyzing it as she was slammed into the wall of energy. Because of Bloom Diva's effect, Swords Angel was destroyed, giving a final, anguish filled shout.

The winds swept up the 4th Daughter and tossed her back, throwing her nearly halfway across the hospital hallway as the wall disappeared. A painful thud ran through the air as she skidded across the floor, unable to move.

 **4th Daughter LP: 400-0**

 **Yuzu Wins**

….

"I activate the Spell, Pendulum Shift! I target Shining-Eyes in my Pendulum Zone and change its Pendulum Scale to a number between one and ten. I increase its scale to eight! Yuya declared as the number under his dragon changed.

"And now, with the already set Pendulum Scale, I Pendulum Summon! Come, my monsters!" Two lights came down from the portal, and Odd-Eyes and Harmonizing Magician reappeared on the field.

 **Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon (Attack Position): 2500 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Harmonizing Magician (Attack Position): 0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 8/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Harmonizing Magician's effect! With it I summon Violet Poison Magician from my deck!"

Arriving next on the field was a mage in purple and dark green robes, resembling Starve Venom in human form. He laughed mockingly as he flung a whip that resembled the dragon's tail around.

 **Violet Poison Magician: 1200 ATK/ 2100 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 1/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"I tune Level 4 Violet Poison Magician and Level 4 Harmonizing Magician!" The female magician once again transformed into four rings of light that positioned themselves around Violet Poison Magician as Yuya chanted.

"Hero's blade that sets forth unyielding light! Here and now, along with a flash, awaken! Synchro Shoukan! Appear, Level 8! Magical swordsman of awakening! Enlightenment Paladin!"

In a flash of light, a magician an white armor carrying two spear-like blades came down to the field, the ticking of a clocking echoing in the foreground.

 **Enlightenment Paladin (Attack Position): 2500 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ Spellcaster/ Synchro/ Effect**

" _That one's new."_ Commented Yuri as the paladin stood next to Odd-Eyes.

" _Actually he's always had that one."_ Yuto corrected before looking down at Yuya. _"He stopped using it after the Lancers left this dimension though. I never asked why."_

Not hearing the two converse, Yuya leaned over on his D-Wheel to pick up an Action Card. "Action Magic, Barrier Lock! By targeting Enlightenment Paladin, I make it so any time it battles, the effects of your monster will be negated!"

The D-Wheeler looked down at the screen of his duel disk. "Both monsters have the same ATK," he muttered as he began uncovering Yuya's strategy. "But when Enlightenment Paladin destroys a monster in battle, that monster's ATK will be inflicted to me as damage!"

"Battle!" Yuya declared, "Enlightenment Paladin attacks Blizzard King Fitzgerald!"

The Synchro monster dashed forward, raising his twin blades against the living ice creature. Fitzgerald shot forth a rain of ice, which Enlightenment Paladin blocked with his weapons.

"YOU WILL NOT WIN THIS DUEL!" Roared the D-Wheeler as he sped up. "I activate the effect of Speed World Mach 2! By removing all eight Speed Counters, Fitzgerald gains 100 ATK for each!"

 **Unknown's Speed Counters: 0**

 **Blizzard King Fitzgerald: 2500-3400 ATK**

"In addition, I activate the effect of Blizzard Executioner in my Graveyard! By banishing this card along with Blizzard Spearman and Blizzard Guardna, I double the ATK of Fitzgerald!"

Three orbs of light flew out of a portal and entered the frigid fiend's body. Roaring with power, it fired an icy blue beam from its eyes that forced Enlightenment Paladin to retreat.

 **Blizzard King Fitzgerald: 3400-6800 ATK**

"Finally, the Action Card, High Dive! I increase the ATK of Fitzgerald by 1000 until the end of this turn! Counter attack, Fitzgerald!"

 **Blizzard King Fitzgerald: 6800-7800**

Yuya held out his arm towards the monsters in his Pendulum Zones. "Shining-Eyes no Pendulum kouka! I make it so that Enlightenment Paladin can't be destroyed by battle this turn. And with Prism-Eyes' Pendulum Effect, I reduce this damage to zero!"

The two brilliant dragons roared as the prisms and armor covering their body reflected mass amounts of light, throwing off Fitzgerald's aim and causing its attacks to destroy the duel lane.

"Prism-Eyes has more to its effect! By targeting Odd-Eyes, I can increase its ATK by the amount of damage that was negated! And in response, I activate the effect of Speed World Mach 2, detaching all twelve counters to increase Odd-Eyes' ATK even further!"

 **Yuya's Speed Counters: 0**

 **Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon: 2500-3700-9000 ATK**

" _It's over nine thousa- no wait it's exactly nine thousand!"_ Yugo exclaimed suddenly and out of nowhere, everyone giving him the most bizarre looks.

Yuya tilted his D-Wheel to the left and grabbed an Action card, only taking a brief look before slamming it down on his duel disk.

"Action Magic, Bi-Attack! This doubles Odd-Eyes' ATK!"

 **Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon: 9000-18000**

"An ATK of 18000?" Mystery duelist gasped, eyes wide in shock

 _"Now it's over 9000!"_ Yugo's antics got the other to look at him again, Yuri secretly wondering how he did not strangle Yugo at this point.

"Anyway… Battle! Odd-Eyes attack Fitzgerald! Spiral Strike Burst!"

Yuya's signature red dragon leapt forward and unleashed its iconic flame burst. Fitzgerald positioned itself in front of its master to protect him. He did so successfully, but at the cost of his own life. The blast continued and hit the base of the D-Wheels front, sending it spiraling as the icy flames disappeared. Both D-Wheels released a shot of hot steam from the exhaust and turned off.

 **Unknown's LP: 4000-0**

 **Yuya Wins**

Removing his helmet, Yuya dismounted off his bike and dashed towards his opponent, who was currently taking deep breathes.

"Talk!" Yuya demanded, "Who are you and what is going on? What is this Dark Dimension you spoke of and what do you know about Odd-Eyes and the other dragons?"

His opponent didn't answer, instead he kept dry heaving, much to Yugo's infuriation

" _Hey, he asked you a quest-"_

 ** _BOOOOONG!_**

Yugo was cut off by what sounded like the ringing of a massive bell, reverberating forcefully. The four boys looked up, and they couldn't believe what they saw. Hovering above them, a green spectral clock with roman numerals was there, one hand on the twelve and the other slowly approaching.

Yuya felt strange as the light from the image began seeping out and spiraling throughout the sky, the vague image of two figures reflected in his eyes. One seemed familiar to him, the other was unknown. All he could tell was the two were surrounded in a void of stars and ticking clocks.

….

Yuzu stood frozen as she heard the ringing of the bell. Green light seemed to pulse from everywhere; the frozen people, the burnt hallway, even her own hand.

"Tsk. Cronus-sama's power has reached its limit." The 4th Daughter whispered as she stood up.

Yuzu didn't have time to react as her opponent slammed into her and forced her onto the ground, back against the wall.

At the same time, both the unknown Riding Duelist and the 4th Daughter grabbed their duel disk and actually rotated the body so that the small blade at the end was pointing outward. Whipping their arm around, the blade gave a green glow as they actually seemed to tear into reality, a gap of multi-colored light opening up. The 4th Daughter dashed through it while the strange duelist revved up his D-Wheel and ran through it.

….

" _Um, WHAT THE HECK JUST HAPPENED!?"_ Shouted Yugo.

" _It seems that his Duel Disk is capable of creating portals with the blade on the end."_ Yuri theorized, basing it off of what he saw. _"Though you are right, it is needlessly there."_

" _Forget about that,"_ Yuto commented, looking under the track. _"Look, over there!"_

Yuya turned his head to where Yuto was pointing, and he saw a group of people trying to cram into a building through a small door. At first Yuya didn't see why it was so important, until he realized that the people where _moving_! Time had restarted.

"We have to head back and tell the others about this," Yuya said as he started making his way back to the hospital….. on foot.

….

"Calm down!" Carly shouted as Ushio thrashed about. "You could have hurt Yu-hey where'd he go?" She halted her train of thought as she saw that Yuya wasn't on the ground.

"And where's Yuzu?' Asked Sawatari, sounding completely normal.

"I don't know." The fake nurse replied, "And how did you talk normal, I thought you were paralyzed or something?"

The blonde giggled awkwardly, before attempting to speak in a gibberish way.

Needless to say, it didn't work. "You were faking the whole time weren't you?" Jack asked, not showing any emotion?

"Hey does anyone else smell burnt paint?" Ushio pointed out, the stench filling up the room.

Opening the door, Reiji stepped outside the room and saw people gathered around Yuzu, who was currently resting against a blackened hospital corridor. He walked forward, disregarding any other people gathering to the scene.

"Yuzu!" Came Yuya's voice, the boy rushing towards them. "What happened?"

*cough-cough* Yuzu hacked, the wind knocked out of her. Reiji turned to face Yuya and asked, "What happened?"

"Time just froze all of a sudden! And then I ended up dueling this guy in a weird Riding Duel," the tomato head answered, sounding a little on the crazy side. "And that's not all, he actually did a Dark Synchro Summon!"

"Nani?" Reiji said, surprised by the fact the summon was real.

"It's not just Dark Synchro." Yuzu mumbled as she attempted to move.

"Yuzu." Yuya positioned himself closer to her. "What do you mean?"

"I faced another summoning method. Dark Anchor Summoning," the pinkette gasped as she recalled her duel.

"Dark Anchor…."

Reiji turned his attention to the once pristine corridor, and simply stated, "It seems that a new enemy has made itself known."

* * *

Cards in this chapter:

** Yuya's cards**

Pendulum Exchange

Normal Spell

Send one Pendulum Monster from your hand to the GY: Draw cards equal to that monster's Pendulum Scale. You can only activate 1 "Pendulum Exchange" once per turn.

Prism-Eyes Pendulum Dragon

3000 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ P.S. 1/ Dragon/ Fusion/ Pendulum/ Effect

1 "Pendulum Dragon" monster + 2 Pendulum monsters with different Attributes

P/ Once per turn, if a monster you control battles a monster your opponent controls (Quick Effect): You can target that monster you control; You take no battle damage from that battle, and if you do, you can target 1 other monster you control, it gains ATK equal to the damage you would have taken, until the end of this turn.

M/ When this card is Fusion Summoned: Negate the effects of all cards your opponent currently controls, until the end of this turn. While you control this face up card: Your opponent takes any effect damage you would have taken. Once per turn, if a card or effect that would change the ATK of exactly 1 monster is activated (Quick Effect): You can target 1 other monster on the field; apply that effect to that target instead. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect: You can place it in your Pendulum Zone; and if you do, you can add 1 Pendulum Monster face-up in yout Extra Deck to your hand.

Shining-Eyes Pendulum Dragon

3000 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 8/ P.S. 6/ Dragon/ Synchro/ Pendulum/ Effect

1 "Magician" Pendulum Tuner Monster + 1+ non-Tuner Monsters

P/ (Quick Effect): You can target 1 monster you control; it cannot be destroyed by battle this turn. You can destroy 1 "Odd-Eyes" monster in your hand, Monster Zone or Pendulum Zone: Target 1 monster you control; that target gains ATK equal to half the destroyed monster's ATK until your next Standby Phase. You can only use each Pendulum Effect of "Shining-Eyes Pendulum Dragon" once per turn.

M/ While you control this face-up card, all battle damage inflicted to your opponent involving Pendulum Monsters you control is doubled. Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can target 1 monster on the field; it gains 500 ATK. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect: You can Special Summon 1 Pendulum monster from your hand or GY; and if you do, you can place this card in your Pendulum Zone.

** Yuzu's cards**

En Angel - Hana

1000 ATK/ 1500 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 8/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ Your opponent cannot activate cards or effects in response to the effects of monsters you control that were Special Summoned from the Extra Deck.

M/ (This card is always treated as a "Melodious" monster)

If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can add 1 Level 4 or lower "En" monster from your Deck to your hand. You can tribute this card: Add 1 Continuous Spell card from your Deck or GY to your hand. You can only use each effect of "En Angel Hana" once per turn. A monster that was Special Summoned from the Extra Deck using this card as Material gains these effects:

*Your Special Summons cannot be negated.

*Special Summoned monsters you control cannot be targeted, or destroyed, by your opponent's card effects.

Quartet the Melodious Songstress

400 TK/ 400 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 4/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ If you Pendulum Summon 1 or more "Melodious" monsters while this card is in your Pendulum Zone: You can add 1 "Melodious Songstress" from your Deck or face-up in your Extra Deck to your hand.

M/ If this card is used as Material for the Fusion, Synchro or Xyz Summon of a "Melodious" monster: You can add 1 "Melodious Songstress" monster from your Deck to your hand. During the End Phase, if this card was removed from the field: Special Summon 1 "Melodious Songstress" from your hand or GY.

Alto the Melodious Songstress

600 ATK/ 300 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 3/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ During your Main Phase, if this card is the only card in your Pendulum Zone: You can add 1 "Melodious" Pendulum Monster from your Deck to your hand.

M/ Once per turn, you can declare a Level between 4 and 6: The Levels of all "Melodious" monsters in your hand become the same as the declared Level, until the end of this turn. You cannot Normal Summon monsters the turn you activate this effect.

Arpeggio the Melodious Diva

1200 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 7/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ If you do not control another "Melodious" monster in your other Pendulum Zone: This card's Pendulum Scale becomes 4. Once per turn: You can target 2 cards in your Pendulum Zone; increase the Pendulum Scale of the first target by up to 3 (MAX. 13) and decrease the Pendulum Scale of the other by up to 3 (MIN. 0)

M/ If this card is Special Summoned: You can target 1 "Melodious" Pendulum Monster in your Pendulum Zone; Special Summon it. During the End Phase, if you do not control a card in your Pendulum Zone: You can place this face-up card you control in your Pendulum Zones

Choral the Melodious Diva

1800 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 5/ P.S. 7/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ Once per turn: You can Pendulum Summon 1 "Melodious" monster in addition to your regular Pendulum Summon.

M/ You can Special Summon this card (from your hand) if you control a face-up "Melodious" monster (You can only Special Summon "Choral the Melodious Diva" once per turn this way.) If this card is sent to the Extra Deck: You can add 1 face-up "Melodious" monster from your Extra Deck to your hand.

Mezzo-Soprano the Melodious Songstress

1500 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Fairy/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your hand) if you control a face-up "Melodious" monster (You can only Special Summon "Mezzo-Soprano the Melodious Songstress" once per turn this way.) Once per turn: you can declare a Level between 4 and 7; the Levels of a face-up "Melodious" monsters you control become the declared Level until the end of this turn. You cannot Special Summon monsters the turn you activate this effect, except "Melodious" monsters.

Haydina the Melodious Maestra

2100 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 5/ Fairy/ Fusion/ Effect

2+ "Melodious" monsters

All other monsters you control gain ATK equal to the number of Materials used in this card's Fusion Summon X300. Cannot be targeted for attacks while you control another face-up "Melodious" monster. During the Turn this card is removed from the field: You can make all monsters you control gain ATK equal to the number of Materials in this card's Fusion Summon X300; and if you do, you can add 1 "Melodious" card from your Deck to your hand.

Vivaldina the Melodious Maestra

1800 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Rank 4/ Fairy/ Xyz/ Effect

2 Level 4 "Melodious" monsters

Fairy-type monsters you control gain ATK and DEF equal to the number Materials attached to this card X200. Once per turn: You can detach 1 Material from this card: Draw a card. If the card drawn by this effect is a Level 4 or lower "Melodious" monster: You can reveal that card, and if you do, Special Summon it.

Wing Diva the Melodious Choir

2000 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Rank 7/ Fairy/ Xyz/ Effect

2 Level 7 "Melodious" monsters

Cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects. You take no damage from battles involving this card. Each time you Special Summon a "Melodious" monster(s): Inflict 500 damage to your opponent. Once per turn: You can detach 1 Material from this card; Special Summon 1 "Melodious" monster from your hand or GY.

Divine Melodious Stage

Field Spell

Cannot be destroyed while you control a Special Summoned "Melodious" monster. During each of your End Phases: Gain LP equal to the number of "Melodious" monster you control X500. Once per turn, if you Special Summon a "Melodious" monster: You can add 1 "Melodious" monster from your Deck to your hand.

Prestissimo

Quick-Play Spell

Excavate the top 2 cards of your Deck: Add all "Melodious" monsters excavated by this effect to your hand, also shuffle all other cards excavated by this effect into the Deck. You can only activate 1 "Prestissimo" per turn. You cannot Special Summon monsters the turn you activate this effect, except "Melodious" monsters.

Unfinished Score

Normal Trap

Halve all battle damage you take this turn. If you take battle damage during the turn a "Melodious" monster(s) you control is destroyed: You can activate this card from your hand.

**Unknown's Cards**

Blizzard Executioner

1500 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WATER/ Level 8/ Beast-Warrior/ Dark Tuner/ Effect

If this card is used as Dark Synchro Material and sent to the GY: Destroy 1 card your opponent controls. (Quick Effect): You can banish this card and 2 other "Blizzard" monsters in your GY; Target 1 "Blizzard" monster you control, that target's ATK becomes double it's current ATK.

Blizzard Gardna

0 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ Water/ Level 2/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect

(Quick Effect): If a monster you control battles an opponent's monster; You can send this card from your hand to the GY, you take no damage from that battle. If this card is destroyed by battle: you take no battle damage for the rest of this turn.

Blizzard Spearman

1400 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ WATER/ Level 3/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect

You can send this card from your hand to the GY (Quick Effect): This turn, all "Blizzard" monsters you control can inflict piercing battle damage. If this card is destroyed by battle: You can make your opponent send up to 2 cards from their hand to the GY.

Blizzard King Fitzgerald

2500 ATK/ 2500 DEF/ WATER/ Level -5/ Fiend/ Dark Synchro/ Effect

1+ non-Tuners - 1 Dark Tuner

If this card attacks an opponent's monster: Your opponent cannot activate Spell or Trap cards until after the damage step. If this card destroys an opponent's monster by battle: Inflict damage to your opponent equal to that monster's ATK. If this card is destroyed by battle or by card effect: You can Special Summon it; and if you do, destroy all cards your opponent controls.

Blizzard Sanctuary

Field Spell

Each time you Special Summon a "Blizzard" monster: Inflict 300 damage to your Opponent. Once per turn: You can add 1 Level 4 or lower "Blizzard" monster from your Deck to your hand.

Speed World Mach 2

Field Spell

The player who reaches Checkpoint 1 first takes the first turn. You can activate 1 other Field Spell Card in addition to this card Unaffected by other card effects. Each time a player draws a card(s) or Special Summons a monster(s),(Other than with the effects of this card), that player places one of his/her own Speed Counters on this card (Max. 12). (The player who goes first cannot place more than 4 Speed Counters on this card for their first turn.) During either player's turn, you can remove any number of your own Speed Counters to activate 1 of the following effects based on the number of Speed Counters removed. 1+: Increase the ATK or DEF of 1 monster you control by 100 for each Speed Counter removed for this effect. 2: Increase your LP by 500. 4: Halve the damage you take from 1 battle or card effect. 6: Draw 1 card. 8: Destroy 1 card on the field. 10: Negate the activation of a card or effect, and if you do, destroy it. 12: Special Summon 1 Level 4 or lower monster from your Hand, Deck, Graveyard, or Extra Deck ignoring the summoning conditions. If a player takes damage, that player loses 1 of his/her Speed Counters for every 1000 points of damage he/she took.

** 4th Daughter's cards**

Dark Anchor Effigy – Guiding Light

1900 ATK/ 0 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Magnitude: -4/ Psychic/ Dark Anchor/ Effect

D.A/ Once per turn, you can add 1 face-up Dark Anchor monster from your Extra Deck to your hand.

M/ You can tribute this card: Add 1 Dark Anchor monster from your deck to your hand, except "Dark Anchor Effigy – Guiding Light." (You can only use this effect once per turn).

Dark Anchor Effigy – Salvation Rock

0 ATK/ 2800 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 10/ Magnitude: -8/ Rock/ Dark Anchor/ Normal

D.A/ If this card is activated: You can add 1 Dark Anchor Monster from your Deck, GY, or face-up in your Extra Deck to your hand (You can only use this effect once per Duel). Once per turn, if you would take damage: you can send 1 Dark Anchor Monster face-up in your Extra Deck to the GY instead.

Flavor Text/ _Let no one place their trust in false deliverers. Only by anchoring our souls to the true Master may we hope to find our salvation._

Dark Anchor Effigy – Rebirth Pool

2800 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WATER/ Level -10/ Magnitude: 8/ Aqua/ Dark Anchor/ Normal

D.A/ If this card is activated: You can add 1 Dark Anchor Monster you control, in your hand, Deck, or GY to your Extra Deck face-up. (You can only use this effect of once per Duel). Once per turn, if your opponent takes damage: You can add 1 Dark Anchor Monster from your GY to your hand; gain LP equal to the damage inflicted.

Flavor Text / _Sink into the very depths of the pool of rebirth. For only by drowning can the old life die and the new life begin._

Dark Anchor Effigy – Blazing Swords-Angel

2900 ATK/ 2400 DEF/ FIRE/ Level 9/ Magnitude: -9/ Fairy/ Dark Anchor/ Effect

D.A/ Dark Anchor Monsters you control gain 1000 ATK.

M/ If this card is Dark Anchor Summoned from the hand (and no other cards were): Negate the effects of, and destroy all Non-Dark Anchor Monsters (in the Monster Zones or Dark Anchor Zones) on the field; and if you do, this card gains ATK equal to the number of cards destroyed by this effect X100.

Dark Effigy Arrangement

Normal Spell

Add up to 2 Dark Anchor Monsters you control and/or in your Dark Anchor Zone to your hand; and if you do, you can reveal two Dark Anchor Monsters in your hand, apply one of the following effects for each Dark Anchor Monster revealed.  
1\. Special Summon the Dark Anchor Monster revealed with this effect.  
2\. Activate the Dark Anchor Monster in one of your Dark Anchor Zones.

Dark Anchor Reincarnation

Normal Trap

Return 1 Dark Anchor Monster on your field to the hand; and if you do, you can Special Summon 1 Dark Anchor Monster from your hand (that monster is treated as being Dark Anchor Summoned).

**Action Cards**

Barrier Lock

Spell

Target 1 monster you control: This turn, if that monster battles an opponent's monster; negate the effects of that monster.

* * *

 **WHEW, DONE! That was a killer to type up, especially with 2 Duels to script. But somehow I managed, and now you've seen the fruit of my labor. Whoopee!**

 **So, in regards to the duels, some people will be wondering why Yuya only summoned Odd-Eyes throughout the duel and not the other three, as MANY of you guys will find it unfair to them. Well I have a reason for that, two actually.**

 **First is because Enlightenment Paladin disappeared after Synchro and I wanted to use it so back off!**

 **And second is because, well you'll see.**

 **And as for Yuzu, I think she did great! Showing off not just Fusion, put adding Pendulum and Xyz to her arsenal as well. SHE DESERVES TO BE A TOP-TIER DUELIST WITH ALL THE SUMMONING METHODS DAMNIT AND THAT'S WHAT SHE'S GONNA BE!**

 **Ahem. My personal favorite part was her final turn, the scene just explains itself.**

 **And as I said at the beginning, for anyone who has read my other story ARC V: Dimension Crisis (which I am working on BTW), you just got a look at one of the cards that Ray will be using. Although, full discloser, Hana will not be a Pendulum Monster in the story.**

 **ANDASFORTHESIGNSOFRENEWALSNEAKPEEKITWASBECAUSEDARKANCHORISTHECORRUPTEDPENDULUMSUMMONINTHESTORYITASWELLASTHEOTHERCORRUPTSUMMONSWELLBEAPPEARINGHERE!**

 **~Deep Breathe~**

 **Yeah, I just know that this is going to be divisive. But before you'll rant and accuse me of ripping of Signs of Renewal, let me explain. While I was outlining the story, I came a halt. I knew a Ritual Dimension was obvious, and a regular Dark Synchro was highly likely, I originally didn't want to do a Link Dimension**

 **~GASP~**

 **Primarily because I felt it was WAY too early into VRAINS to create a Dimension based on it, and because with how Link Summoning has changed the game, how it would affect the dueling. I talked to Donny about any suggestions, and he brought up the corrupted summons. When I first asked about Dark Anchor summoning and he explained how it worked, I ended up thinking to myself "Wait a minute, how come only Synchro has gotten an evil or perverted counterpart."**

 **It just seemed unfair to me, so I asked him if he would allow me to borrow them for this story, and he agreed. The idea for Dark Fission, Dark Sacrifice, Dark Xyz, Dark Anchor, Dark Reverse, as well as Dark Rite (WHICH HASN'T APPEARED YET) and Dark Bind (CORRUPTED LINK SUMMONING), are still his, I'm just using them with his permission.**

 **Okay then, feel free to debate this. Go on, I can take it!**

 **So because I'm beat, I'll finish with reviews:**

 **Shimmering-Sky: Hope the duels didn't disappoint.**

 **HunterHQ: Well they weren't exactly Shadow Duels. Remember, though they do have similarities, the characters of the Dark Dimension are not Dark Signers themselves. In fact, the flame wall was just a Solid Vision project emitted from the dueling equipment. They could even turn it off if they want to.**

 **No one mentioned Sergey because Yuzu has personally requested no one talk about him in her presence, but can you really blame her.**

 **AlissonJohns: Don't worry it'll be explained. And as for the Fusion, Synchro and Xyz Counterparts, just wait.**

 **Unknowedz: Interesting, I'll take it into consideration.**

 **Donny: Thank you for the tip. Also I now know how hard it was for the Arc V writers keeping track of everyone.**

 **Epsilon Tarantula: Yes, listen to the Hellspawn, and for once I don't mean that as an insult! Don't ask it's – wait did you just give me a congrats? Akato is it time for the apocalypse?**

 **thetiger39: Yes well as you can see, even Yuzu felt like a pylon post-Sergey. Also I'm glad you brought that up, because it's going to come up again next time. Mwahahaha…..**

 **Free Stratos: Well if you think about it, all of the Legacy characters are different from the originals. Speaking off VRAINS, I'm going to put up a poll on my profile regarding their characters. It'll be open for as long as I say so.**

 **scififan599: While I do think it's a good idea, I don't think that Yuya having Storm Access is a good idea. I've already gotten some complaints regarding how similar the Link Dimension is to Yu-Gi-Oh! VRAINS, and I don't want to make it worse by giving something of Yusaku's/Playmaker. Besides, Skills seemed to be pretty specific to the Duelist for the most part, so maybe Yuya's Skill should something more appropriate and OH GOD I JUST HAD THE WORST IDEA EVER!**

 _Yuya: Skill, Smile Dimension, activate!_

 ***shudders* I hope you're happy with what you just made me imagine.**

 **Farewell and see you next time!**

 **P.S. This chapter was almost 50 pages. You guys better have enjoyed it!**


	6. The Aftermath of the Frozen Day

**Hey! So everything in my life has calmed down again now I'm back. Thank you all for being so understanding and now enjoy. This chapter's only barely longer than the preview, but that's cause I'm better at Dueling Chapters than plot chapters, if only because with plot chapters I'm not entirely sure what to add or take out.**

 **Yu-Gi-Oh, not mine. Oh, and check out the poll on my profile if you haven't already.**

* * *

" _What?" Dark Rebellion asked, astounded by Odd-Eyes' claims. "On top of one already, a corrupted Pendulum Summon as well."_

" _The Nerve!" Clear Wing roared, "First these people create a pale imitation of the proud art of Synchro Summoning, then they taint Zarc's legacy with their perverted summons!"_

" _Yes," Starve Venom purred, angry but less so then his brethren. "Who are these humans, and where did they come from?"_

" _He said that he was from the Dark Dimension." Odd-Eyes replied. "And that the Dark Synchro was only a fraction of their power."_

" _So by that logic…" Starve Venom murmured._

" _They have a corrupted form of Xyz and Fusion Summoning as well." Dark Rebellion finished._

" _AAAAAAAAAARRRRRRRRRRRRRRRGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGGHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!" Howled Clear Wing, aggravated by the mere thought of more Dark Summons. "Unforgivable! Even now these humans continue to find ways to hurt our kind! You heard the scream that Duelist's monster went through as he summoned that fraud of a Synchro Monster, and Horakhty forbid the pain they go through when used to invoke Dark Xyz or Dark Fusion monsters!"_

" _Indeed," Starve Venom whispered darkly. "It seems no matter what happens, humans still cannot grasp that we are alive. That we feel everything that happens to us."_

" _We should have killed them all when we had the chance!" Shouted Dark Rebellion._

" _Wait." Interjected Odd-Eyes, earning furious glares from the other three dragons. "It's true that a few humans don't care what happens to their Monsters, but still-"_

" _But nothing!" Dark Rebellion cut off Odd-Eyes with a hate filled statement. "You forget Odd-Eyes, you may have forgiven humanity, but the three of us haven't. We only put it aside because you wanted us to do so."_

" _Why do you even bother defending them? After everything they did to us, to other monsters, to Zarc?" Clear Wing asked, though really more of a demand. "The moment Ray split the worlds again we could have stopped the child from absorbing him, so that once they were gone we could have become one once more? And yet it was you who begged us to wait and watch your piece these past few years? Why?"_

" _I always said he was the weakest link in the chain." Starve Venom scoffed. "Between the four of us, he never really had the nerve to outright say his anger."_

 _Odd-Eyes frowned, remembering that day well. The anger the three other dragons had built up for years had gone through the roof after Ray had split their Supreme King Dragon form once again. Just before they could use whatever strength they had left to intervene, Odd-Eyes stopped them and allowed Zarc's soul to be absorbed by her younger sister, preventing him from reviving again. The three were furious at their youngest brother, appalled by his seemingly traitorous act. Odd-Eyes barley got the chance to explain why before he fired at them, allowing him to speak._

" _My reasons are the same now as they were then. I can never fully forgive humans for what they did to us, or to Zarc-niichan. But, dwelling on the past was not helping in any way. Back then, when Zarc-niichan began to change to appease the crowds, and he started to lose himself, I would have done anything to get back to the way things were. When all he had were us and those two, we were his family."_

 _Odd-Eyes' smile turned into a frown as he continued. "But, eventually, I began to blame the humans for their actions, the harm they caused Zarc. When we became one that time, I felt invincible, as if there was no one who would ever harm Zarc-niichan again. But when Ray came to face him, and when I saw the tears in her eyes begin to form as she split us apart, I didn't know at the time, but a seed of doubt was placed in my heart._

 _When I came to, I was in Standard, in the possession of Yuya. At first, I thought nothing of him. He was just a shadow of our true brother, and all I could do was tolerate him until Zarc-niichan was revived. As the years went by and he started dueling, I went along with his "Dueling for Smiles" ideal, amused by how much he seemed like Zarc was back then. I thought I knew how it would end, a broken boy filled with anger._

 _Then it all started when Akaba Leo's war spread throughout the dimensions. As we traveled and he continued to follow his own beliefs, I found myself becoming attached to him as more than just an imitation of Zarc. Yuya, he would never purposely compromise who he was for the sake of the crowd. Rather than give into what they wanted, he stayed rooted in what he believed in, that dueling was about peace and bringing fun and light to people's lives._

 _For the first time in what felt like forever, I saw Zarc-niichan was truly smiling. Not a smile filled with hatred or darkness, but rather, one filled with the kindness he had lost long ago."_

 _The other three dragons merely looked at their brother as if he had suddenly grown a set of wings. Though they did admit, it was years since they had seen Zarc smile and not want to destroy humanity._

" _But," Odd-Eyes continued, the events of what happened appearing in his dual colored eyes. "Then came the day were Zarc-niichan was revived, and we became one again. I heard Yuya's screams, his pain-filled wails. By then the doubt that I had had grown, and I truly began wondering if revenge was the right thing."_

" _Of course it was." Starve Venom chuckled, circling the red dragon like a buzzard. "We were finally going to give the human race the justice they deserved. Punishment for treating us like slaves to their desires."_

" _But at what cost?!" Odd-Eyes roared, pushing the purple dragon back away from him. "Yes, Zarc-niichan's desires for power had helped increased our rage towards humanity, but we influenced himself as well. Instead of trying to keep him from changing, we bottled up our true emotions and took our anger out on humans! It was like what Daiki had said-!"_

" _Don't you dare mention him!" Clear Wing shouted, Odd-Eyes had poked the bear, or rather, dragon in this case. "He turned his back on Zarc the moment the accident happened!"_

" _Evil isn't born, it's made." Said Odd-Eyes, ignoring the anger it got out of his fellow monsters. "When I attacked you, Starve Venom, before we revived, I took a split second to look back at Yuya. And do you know what I saw. I no longer saw his joyful smile, but Zarc's darkened one._

 _I realized then, that we had never been helping our brother. As long as we keep wishing for revenge, keep wanting to make them pay for all the pain they caused, we were only encouraging Zarc to give into his anger. At that moment, I finally saw that we were just as bad as the humans we had despised. The four of us had been so caught up in our own anger that we didn't see Zarc continued to lose himself. And instead of hating or fearing Ray, I should have been grateful to her!"_

" _She turned on Zarc as well!" Dark Rebellion howled._

" _Only because Zarc-niichan could never hear her voice! Compared to us, she actually tried helping him by attempting to remind him why he started dueling in the first place, while all we did was focus on anger and vengeance! The moment the duel between Yuya and Yuri ended, by the Egyptian Gods themselves I wanted to stop them from merging and reviving Zarc! But I couldn't, and you know why!?"_

" _Because the three of you had helped fuel Zarc's quest for destruction that he wouldn't have listened to me! When Ray spilt us again I saw the chance to get back the brother I had lost and I knew I was going to take it!"_

 _Starve Venom and the other stayed silent, taking in their brother's words. Though he had explained his actions before, Odd-Eyes didn't say anything about feeling responsible for furthering Zarc's fall from grace._

" _I'm not saying we should completely forgive humans, we have every reason to never do so. But if I were you guys, I'd ask myself, 'Is anger the best way to help Zarc-niichan?"_

" _What are you saying?" Clear Wing asked._

" _I know you've only put aside your hatred against humans because I stopped you. But please, don't focus on keeping this anger alive, try to let go of the darkness that has shackled you all for so long. Because as long as that hatred exists, then things will never change…"_

 _Silence passed over the four dragons before Dark Rebellion broke it in an attempt to end the conversation. "So, did you see anything else after the duel?"_

" _Yes. As the celestial clock that appeared in the sky began to tick its final seconds, I saw something appear in Yuya's eyes." Explained the Pendulum Dragon. "The silhouettes of Astrograph Magician…. And Chronograph Magician as well."_

" _Chronograph Magician!" The Synchro Dragon repeated in shock._

" _That's impossible," whispered the Xyz Dragon. "There is only one copy of that card in existence and its owner should have disappeared along with the Original World."_

" _But, if Akaba Leo had survived the dimension being torn asunder, then what's to say that_ **he** _didn't survive somehow as well." Suggested the Fusion Dragon. "After all, the three of them became connected the moment they found the Three Universe Magicians."_

…..

"We both lost. I can't believe we both lost!" The 4th Daughter panicked, sitting in a fetal position. Her breaths were hectic, eyes widened like saucer plates. "This can't be, the temple is invincible, and we are the foundations of this world…" she muttered to herself.

"Yet weaklings like you ruin our reputation, Aleksandra."

The 4th Daughter, Aleksandra, turned her head and saw someone standing over her. An adult male, early twenties at the latest, with pale blue hear and bright gold eyes. He was wearing a red shirt that exposed his midriff under a black jacket-top, and black pants held up by a white belt, the attire decorated by blue accent marks. He also had on black and white fingerless gloves.

"Kiryu-sama!" Aleksandra gasped. "I am sorry I failed to find Mayu and…"

"It was my job." Kiryu interrupted, "I was tasked with finding the traitor and then Cronus gave the assignment to you acolytes. Well look how that turned out. You deserve a punishment not just for failing your mission, but for even taking the mission at all."

Aleksandra lowered her head in shame, willing to accept anything Kiryu did. With a bit of a sadistic smile, Kiryu took out a Duel Disk and placed it on his wrist, the blade part facing forward. Humming lightly, the blade started to glow. Positioning his arm, he was prepared to slash the blade against her shoulder…

Before he could swing though, a new hand appeared and ripped the device off his wrist. Kiryu turned to see who it was. A sixteen year old, with luminous yellow eyes and spikey dual-colored hair; primarily silver with a section of black. He was wearing an outfit similar to Kiryu's own, the differences being that his shirt was a silver V-neck, the accents were purple instead of blue, and gun-metal gray boots over the legs of his pants. On his neck was a blue choker decorated with a single green bead, and covering his hands were a pair of black and purple fingerless gloves with green cuffs around his wrists.

"Yusuke…" Kiryu growled.

"Enough." Yusuke spoke, voice filled with seriousness. "You know the rules Kiryu, punishments are to be delivered by the Duel Priests in the First and Second Tiers. We are Fourth, the lowest, so unless you've been promoted to one of the higher ranks, you have no right to do this."

" _Oh, Yusuke-chan. So serious_ ," came a new voice. The three turned to see someone lurking behind a corner, face hidden by shadows. "And here I was hoping to see something exciting. I mean, what's the point of being evil if you can't enjoy it?"

"This again," Yusuke groaned, having had this conversation before. "I've said it before and I'll say it again, we are _**not**_ evil."

"Hmm, well let's see. We wear _black_ , we live in the _Dark_ Dimension, and we use ' _Dark'_ Summoning Methods! Heck, your Deck literally has the word 'Evil" in the name!" The stranger giggled, amused by the irony.

"Yusuke's deck doesn't actually have the word 'Evil' in it silly." Came a female voice as someone else walked in on the conversation. The males groaned and rolled their eyes as a young woman stepped forward. She was pretty, with long, ankle-length blond hair, which was decorated with small star and constellation shaped clips, and rosy pink eyes that displayed her innocent nature. Her outfit consisted of a pink long-sleeved shirt under a black jacket, along with a black skirt and pink knee-high socks and black boots. Apart from her pink shirt, her outfit was covered with yellow accent marks. Around her neck was a necklace comprised of a thin gold chain and a pendant that resembled the constellation Aquila, and on her ears were a pair of sun and moon earrings.

"I was mocking him, Venus." The unknown person droned, before muttering 'dumb blonde' under his breath.

"Oh, sorry I didn't realize. Though you were wrong. Yusuke's deck doesn't actually use the word 'Evil' per say but-"

"I don't care." Spat the hidden member before looking back at Yusuke. "I'd say we're evil, why can't you accept that? Oh wait," he said before his lips curled up in a twisted grin, "It's because that's what _she_ said, isn't it!"

In a flash, Yusuke's calm presence turned into rage. Within seconds, he had the blade of Kiryu's Duel Disk pressed up against the throat of his mocking ally. The light from the screen revealed the person's face, a pair of purple eyes and orange colored bulbous spiked hair. The cruel smiled on his face still stayed put, not caring about the murderous look in Yusuke's eyes.

"Let me say this again, Vector. We are not the evil ones." The young man whispered furiously. Venus and Aleksandra backed away from the two, fearful of Yusuke's sudden change in attitude. Kiryu on the other smiled, enjoying how the situation had turned out. Though normally a diligent and subdued person, on emention of _her_ would cause Yusuke to turn into someone's worst enemy.

"And if you bring up what she said that day again, well, then you'll have to deal with Black-Heart."

"Stop this quarrelling at once."

The calm yet powerful voice caught everyone's attention. Breaking up what they were doing, the five people stood together in a line, hands over their chest in a salute as a final person walked into the conflict. Standing before them was male, no older than eighteen. He had chin length jet-black hair and vibrant red-orange eyes that made all around him bow at his power. On his head was a crown of five thick, flat spikes, two on the sides of his head and three on the front, each pointing out and up. Most of his clothing was hidden by a large robe that went down to his feet, decorated by green accent marks and a plethora of roman numerals that were actually moving across the fabric.

"Hail, Cronus-sama!" The five shouted at the same time, recognizing their master and leader.

"At ease my children. I've seen enough of this petty conflict." Cronus said, eying each one of them individually. "Aleksandra, you are a promising recruit. You are mastering Dark Anchor Summoning at a fantastic rate, and while your fate in us is admirable, you must remember that we are not omnipotent. Even my own strengths have limits that I must accept. Only once you realize your own weaknesses can your power become stronger."

"Understood, Cronus-sama." Aleksandra saluted before Cronus turned a stern eye towards Kiryu and Vector.

"Now Kiryu, I understand you desire to duel stronger opponents. I consider myself a reasonable person, but your disobedience is beginning to drive me to my wits end. And as for you Vector, I don't believe in life debts, but I would expect a little obedience from you."

"But Cronus," Kiryu objected in a fearful tone, a far cry from the near sadistic one he had just been using. "I am just trying to satisfy my desires. I grow tired of dueling weak Acolytes!"

"Yeah, and what's the point of having all this power if you can't enjoy it!" Vector added.

Cronus darkened his expression, silencing any other thoughts the two wanted to say. "All power has a price and a limit, Vector. My ability to halt time is exhausting and costly. And Kiryu, if you are going to go rogue on my orders, at least try not to destroy a building next time." The last part was probably meant to be funny, but it didn't get any laughs.

"Until the two of you learn responsibility and self-control, you shall be suspended from any Priest activity, unless I authorize it. Is this unclear to you in any way?"

"No, Cronus-sama." The two men begrudgingly said.

"And Venus," the leader of the Priests said rather uncomfortably, "You keep doing what you're doing."

"Will do!" The blonde replied with a smile.

Cronus gave a brief, forced laugh before turning towards the final person. "Yusuke, I would like to speak with you personally. The rest of you, dismissed."

…..

Yusuke followed Cronus as they traveled through the Duel Temple, a series of massive Aztec-styled buildings that could be seen from miles away. The temple was composed of five separate buildings, one in the north, south, east and western parts of the compound, while the fifth one stood in the center. The five temples stood in the center of a scarred land. Not a single animal was in sight, nor did a single plant grow for miles. The sky was covered in thick, gray clouds that seemed to go on forever.

The two Priests stood atop the roof of the center building, Yusuke staring at the skyline of a partially destroyed city in the background, while Cronus smiled down at numerous people in black outfits decorated with different colored accent marks wander about, some dueling.

"Yusuke," Cronus asked, "What do you see when you look down at our Acolytes?"

The black and silver haired teen shifted his attention towards the peoples walking around the grounds of the compound. "People who believe in you sir," he answered.

"I see much more than that. I see people from all walks of life, the rich and the poor, diverse cultures gathered here not just because they believe in me, but in _us_. We ten priest are the ones upholding and protecting this world. Though I was the one who saved this world from itself, it is only through the creation of our organization that these people have hope for a better future."

Yusuke flashed a small smile, staring at his leader and mentor. His parents had died when he was relatively young, so apart from…someone else, Cronus was like a father to him, despite the small age difference.

" _Is dragging other worlds into our own affairs for our own sake really peaceful!"_

Yusuke's smile left his face as those words echoed in his head, the hurt and betrayed voice inscribed in his memories. Cronus took note of this, and asked "Are you alright?"

The boy didn't answer, giving the young man his answer. "You're thinking about what Mayu said that day, aren't you?"

He nodded yes. "Cronus-sama, is going into other dimensions really our only option?"

Cronus sighed. "I'm afraid it is. I take no pride nor joy in what we have to do, but it is the only way we can obtain the energy needed to save our dying world. Maybe it is like Akaba Leo's plan to merge the Standard, Fusion, Synchro and Xyz worlds, however we are not trying to hurt anyone native to the other worlds. Leo was a selfish fool who failed to realize his plan was leading to nothing but destruction."

"But with is it about our plan that makes us not evil?" Asked the torn Yusuke.

"What have I always told you, Yusuke? Evil isn't born, it's made. Unlike Leo, we have no desire to purposely do any harm to other dimensions for our own reasons. This idea of going into other dimensions and dueling their inhabitants, is the only way to gather enough energy within the limited time we all have before…." Cronus explained, eyes locked on the horizon. "Do you understand what I'm saying?"

"I suppose I do," the boy answered, unsure of the truth in his answer.

"Good." The young man gave the black and silver haired youth a pat on the back. "Now run along, I'm sure you have duties to attend to."

"Yes," Yusuke nodded before running back into the halls of the temple, his master watching with a ghost of a smile on his face.

"You grow soft on that boy Cronus-sama." Said a thick female voice that sounded to be in the mid-forties. A hooded figure with a blank mask on her face stepped up behind the leader of the Dark Dimension and asked "Favoritism will divide the unity in our ranks and weaken us."

"I suppose it can't be helped," he chuckled. "I can relate to the pain of betrayal. And anyway, why are you here? I thought I requested not to be distrubed?"

"My apologies sire, but I have news on the Chronos sir. The construction is now sixty-five percent complete," the masked woman answered.

"Excellent. Keep watch on the engineers' progress until they are finished. Inform me on any major events. Any other news you wish to report?"

"My spies in the Fusion Dimension have informed me that the headmaster has been informed of our existence by the Lancers. Perhaps we should move back our plan to a later date?"

"No." Cronus replied, not looking towards his associate. "Our time is running short. Unless we gather enough energy to power the Chronos by the time it is completed, our world will perish. Though I wish there was another option, it seems that if a war is coming, we are going to start it. And in three days' time, Academia will receive the first punch."

…..

"And then this giant ghost clock showed up out of nowhere and started ringing," Yuya explained. After what happened in Synchro, the Lancers regrouped back at LDS where Reiji asked Yuya and Yuzu to tell their tales.

"Ghost clock, that's a new one," Sora quipped.

"Something felt weird though. When I looked up at it, I saw something, familiar. It looked like I saw Stargazer, and Timegazer too." Yuya added, vaguely remembering the shapes of the two figures he saw when he looked up at the strange clock.

"I saw something like that to!" Yuzu exclaimed, an image coming to her mind as well. "It was a bit blurry, and I only saw it for about a second... but it sort of looked like a golden person with angel wings, the four bracelets that once belonged to me and the others on her wrist."

"Two beings who resemble Yuya's first Pendulum Magicians and a third wearing the four Bracelets." Summarized Reiji, calmly adjusting his glasses. "I can only think of one reason why you two would see them."

"You think it has something to do with Zarc and Ray?" Asked Gongenzaka.

"It makes sense," Muttered Kurosaki. "Yuya and Yuzu where the only ones of us who were unaffected by the time freeze, and that person Yuya dueled did say he knew about Zarc."

"So, if Zarc is related to this problem and Yuya saw what looked like Stargazer Magician, then that means it had to have been the Astrograph Magician Zarc used to merge with his dragons?" Asked Dennis, who had been informed about the details of Zarc not long after his, well, un-carding.

"Most likely, but the other two we don't know about." Reiji stated before looking at Yuzu, "But based on your statement about one of them wearing the bracelets that once belonged to you and your other selves, the one you saw must have a connection to Ray."

"So, who's the last one? If Astrograph and the other one are connected to Zarc and Ray, where does the last one fit into this?" Questioned Sora as he took out a fresh lollipop.

Yuya looked out the window and gazed at the cityscape. "I don't know. Me, Yuzu and the others, we don't have that many memories of Zarc and Ray's lives, plus Reiji's father only told us his perspective. We don't know anything else about their past apart from what we were told."

At this point, Sawatari joined the conversation. "Well it seems pretty obvious that whoever is out there trying to destroy us all, he or she has some kind of connection to Zarc. Maybe he wants revenge on Zarc."

"But Zarc regrets what he did, he gave up his desire for revenge after my duels at the end of the war!" Objected Yuya. Though he had no real way of confirming the fact, he knew in his heart that his previous incarnation had found peace and abandoned his drive for revenge.

"Yeah but do the people from the United World know about that. If you stop and think about it, Zarc had no moral high ground over humanity. Yes it was wrong for the people to encourage him to hurt his opponents on purpose when it was just an accident at first, but as you said, we only know the facts from Reiji's old man. We have no idea whether or not he resisted their demands at first and caved after time or he went along with it instantly. In either case, what happened to him ultimately boils down to 'He had a decision, and it really sucked."

The other Lancers looked at Sawatari in shock, except Reiji who never emoted. "Woah," Sora muttered with a lollipop right in front of his mouth, "That is surprisingly solid logic."

"I know." The blonde preened proudly before realizing that Sora was implying something. "Wait what do you mean by that?"

"In any case," Kurosaki interrupted as he turned his attention to Yuzu, "I want to know more about Ruri teaching you how to Xyz Summon."

" _You still haven't said anything about that!"_ Serena shouted from inside Yuzu's head.

"Shut it." Yuzu whispered, Serena whipping her head around in anger.

"Yeah! I am offended Yuzu!" Sora grumbled angrily. He may have let go of his problems with Xyz, but he still had his pride as a Fusion user and he was more than a little upset at Yuzu for learning another summoning method.

"What we should be focusing on is this Dark Dimension and their summoning methods," Reiji calmly injected. "Whoever they are, my father clearly didn't know about them, so what they want and why they're doing this is a mystery for the time being. I will have my men continue their investigations and continue monitoring all summon energy discharges.

In the meantime, Yuya and Yuzu," the bespectacled CEO said as he turned his attention towards the two, "You go home and get some rest. You'll need your full strength if something like this happens again. The rest of you will stay here at LDS and help with the investigation. Dismissed."

As the Lancers scattered, Yuya and Yuzu exited the room together. "Are you sure we shouldn't help them? I mean these people are dangerous, and if any two people would have a target on their back, it would be us wouldn't it?" the pinkette questioned.

"I don't like it either, but you heard Reiji. We need everyone in the best shape if we're going to fight these duelists," the tomato head replied, though he was inwardly feeling the same as Yuzu. "Besides, if I recall we had plans for today that can still happen. Only if the lady insists." Yuya charmingly said as he held out his hand for Yuzu.

With a hint of pink dusting her cheeks, Yuzu reproached Yuya's gesture. "Well, I guess some time to ourselves wouldn't be so bad."

….

While the Lancers discussed their plans to deal with the people of the Dark Dimension and the members of the Duel Temple, they were unaware of the one currently in the Maiami suburbs.

Face blocked by a hooded cloak decorated with white markings, the person calmly walked down the streets, completely ignored by the citizens. It was almost as if she were a ghost unseen by the world. Though most of her appearance was shielded, a neutral expression could be seen grazing across her face, determined to fulfill her mission.

Suddenly, she stopped when the cry of a small child reached her ears. Looking forward, she saw a little girl standing in front of a tree, tears beginning to shimmer in her eyes.

"Are you alright," the hooded person asked, voice calm and soothing like an elder sibling.

"Some mean boys showed up *sniff* and they threw Hikari-chan in the twee *sniff*." The little girl explained, pointing her finger at a teddy bear hanging on a branch.

As the child looked up at her with eyes begging to help, the stranger reached into her pocket and pulled out a card. Pulling her arm back, she threw the card at the branch, knocking the bear off and sending it plummeting to the ground. The little girl winced and closed her eyes, fearing the worst. However, the feel of soft fur against her skin told her otherwise. Opening one, she saw the hooded person holding out the teddy bear in front of her face.

"Hikari-chan!" Exclaimed the little girl as she took the teddy bear in her small arms.

"See, now everything's alright." The stranger said as she rubbed the little girl's head, a ghost of a smile appearing on her face.

"Thank you!" The child joyfully said as she skipped away with her toy firmly in her grasp.

" _That was sweet. And here I thought your time in the Temple had drained all of that out of you,"_ Came a female voice that resonated with power and grace. The hooded figure rolled her eyes and attempted to ignore the comment, keyword being 'attempted.'

"It's bad enough the Duel Priests are starting to expand into the other dimensions, I don't need you breathing down my neck," hissed the hooded figure as she continued walking. "I just want to get the dragons and leave this dimension."

" _And then what?"_ The voice questioned with a hint of irritation in her voice. _"You'll continue hiding in and out of the dimensions? I am connected to life itself, I know how miserable you are living this one."_

The hooded figure stayed silent for a moment, before barking back, "Listen, I made my choice and now I'm dealing with the consequences. You don't think I want things to go back to the way they were, well they can't. So long as Cronus rules over my home world, I can never go back. I made that clear after what I said when I ran away after finding out Cronus' true agenda."

" _That is not what I meant. I mean how much longer are you going to live by the identity that was given to you when you joined the Duel Temple? I've seen the person you were in the past and…."_

"Please, just stop!" The figure interrupted, not wishing to reopen a can of worms. "The person I was disappeared when she entered the Duel Temple. Now, tell me where the dragons are? And be honest about this, Biograph Magician."

….

"Okay now, we're almost there," Yuya joyfully said as he led Yuzu, the girl covering her eyes half-amused.

"Yuya we've been walking like this for over twenty blocks, and up this hill for like five minutes." The pinkette moaned, tired of her boyfriend's games. It was cute sometimes, but this was definitely not one of those times. "Can I look now?"

"Just a few more steps," the tomato head giggled as they took a few more steps forward. "Okay, open them now!"

Removing her hand from her face, Yuzu looked around to see that they were standing on a hill in the city park. Laying down in front of her was a picnic blanket covered in all kinds of delicious foods, most of which she recognized as dishes Yuya's mother would make. The rich aroma filled her nose and overwhelmed her senses. Of course, what most people don't know is that this was the best spot to watch the sunset, as the final rays of light would shine across the windows and slip through the cracks in the cityscape, it was a romantic place to have a date.

"Yuya," Yuzu gaped speechlessly.

"I know, it's kinda cheesy and I could do _way_ better than this. But Yuto said sometimes you've gotta do something plain simple," be explained as Yuto watched the scene from inside Yuya, seemingly giving him a thumbs up.

"No, no. It's fine, besides sometimes less is more." Yuzu said as she sat down on the blanket, Yuya following after her.

" _I still think we should have gone with my idea,"_ pouted Yugo.

" _Yes because riding in on a rocket powered unicorn wearing nothing but wrestler tights and a cape is the perfect way to sweep a lady off her feet,"_ Yuri snarked, having heard many other date ideas from his Synchro counterpart.

" _I have to agree with him on this one_ ," Yuto commented.

Ignoring the discussion inside his head, Yuya took a bottle of what appeared to be apple cider and poured it into cups for him and Yuzu. After taking a sip, the two began to eat. Yuya brought out their first course, one of the recipes his mother had taken from Michio's cooking show and modified.

Meanwhile, the other three girls watched the date unfold with either interest (Ruri and Rin) or irritation for STILL not telling them about how she picked up Xyz Summoning (Serena).

" _Oh this is so sweet."_ The Xyz girl sweetly purred as the two locked eyes after Yuya said….

" _OKAY ENOUGH WITH THE PUPPIES AND UNICORNS!_ " Serena shouted, startling her three counterparts. _"START TALKING! WHEN DID YOU AND RURI AGREE THAT SHE'D TEACH YOU XYZ SUMMONING?"_

"Serena! Now is not the time or place!" Yuzu shouted back, confusing her boyfriend. "Sorry about that. Serena was just mad that I still haven't told her or Rin why I asked Ruri to teach me how to Xyz Summon."

"Oh," Yuya replied as he took a bite out of his meat. "You know," he said with his mouth full, "I'm kinda curious about that too."

" _THANK YOU!"_

Yuzu sighed, turning her head away from Yuya's concerned expression and the looks she got from the others. "Yuzu, if there's anything wrong you can tell me," he comforted as he rubbed arm tenderly. "But if you don't want to I-"

"No. This important for you and the others to hear too," the pinkette said, sorrow resounding in her voice. "But first, Yuto," she asked, even though she had no way of knowing whether or not he was there. "Do you know what two weeks from yesterday was?"

The Xyz boy was momentarily confused by her question, before he began to think about what she said. _"Well yesterday was the twentieth, so two weeks from that was the sixth and that-"_ he froze mid-sentence as a look of realization spread across his face. _"Oh."_

" _What, what's wrong?"_ a concerned Yuri asked.

" _Yeah what's the big deal about the sixth?"_ Added Yugo, equally worried by Yuto sudden realization.

" _That was me and Ruri's anniversary."_

The three boys looked at the Xyz duelist with wide eyes, recognizing the flash of sorrow in his own. Yuto stared off into space, presumably hoping that Ruri was looking back at him.

"Should I take that as a yes," Yuzu said, wishing to continue on with her story. Yuya nodded his head yes, and Yuzu took a deep breath as she began to explain.

…

" _It was two weeks ago. I was having a nightmare about what happened with Sergey,"_ the pinkette recalled as she envisioned herself that night, thrashing under her covers in a cold sweat. She could still see the gigantic, shadowed version of her opponent from the Friendship covered, now fused with the very monster that he had used to defeat her with. Only this time, he went straight for her.

The moment the attack connected, Yuzu woke up and practically jumped out of bed. Each breath she took was longer yet smaller than the rest. Even months later, her near death experience had stuck with her. Out of all the hell she went through during the Academia War that was perhaps the most traumatic and horrifying. Being mind-controlled by the Doktor was a close second, an event only slightly less nightmarish for her both because she could remember none of it, and because her friends had assured her that, unlike Ruri, Rin and Serena, she had not been forced to hurt anyone.

Managing to calm herself down, Yuzu sighed. Ever since she realized how useless she had been during the final stages of the war, she had trained with as many duelists she could fine; rematches with Masumi, practice duels against the students of Gongenzaka's family dojo, even the students from You Show helped her out. And though she finally mastered Pendulum Summoning, she still felt as if she wasn't any better now than she was back then.

Though she would only admit it to herself, after Yuya first created Pendulum Summoning during his Duel with Strong Ishijima, she got a bit jealous. While they were pretty equal beforehand, with this whole new mechanic that belonged to only him, it was pretty hard to not be envious. And he only got stronger after that. Even after she learned Fusion Summoning and managed to close the gap, it only got larger after Yuya picked up the other summoning methods. Combined with all the fighting experience he got from _actually_ doing something during the war, it was pretty safe to say that Yuzu was leagues behind him.

Yuzu snapped out of her depressing mood when she realized that there was someone else in her room with her. Turning her head, she saw Ruri sitting on by the window, lovingly gazing down outside as she sang…

" _How does a moment last forever?  
_

 _How can a story never die?  
_

 _It is love we must hold on to  
_

 _Never easy but we try"  
_

Yuzu listened on as Ruri continued to sing the somewhat romantic melody. Wondering what it was about, she came to the conclusion that it maybe had something to do with Yuto. Between all four sets of counterparts, the two of them were the most forward with their feelings towards each other.

 _"Sometimes our happiness is captured  
_

 _Somehow a time and place stand still  
_

 _Love lives on inside our hearts  
_

 _And always will  
_

 _Minutes turn to hours  
_

 _Days to years then gone  
_

 _But when all else has been forgotten  
_

 _Still our song lives on"  
_

The small smile on Ruri's face disappeared as she moved onto the next verse.

" _Maybe some moments weren't so perfect  
_

 _Maybe some memories not so sweet  
_

 _But we have to know some bad times  
_

 _Or our lives are incomplete"  
_

Yuzu easily realized what that verse meant; Ruri was homesick. Probably remembering how she had watched her home be destroyed and all the other horrors she had been forced to endure after being kidnapped and taken to Academia. However, Yuzu watched as Ruri continued singing, the smile on her face beginning to return as a triumphant aura flared to life around her.

 _"Then when the shadows overtake us  
_

 _Just when we feel all hope is gone  
_

 _We'll hear our song and know once more  
_

 _Our love lives on"  
_

Ruri stopped singing for a brief moment, letting the melody of the song flow from her throat before resuming singing the lyrics.

 _How does a moment last forever?  
_

 _How does our happiness endure?  
_

 _Through the darkest of our troubles  
_

 _Love is beauty, love is pure  
_

 _Love pays no mind to desolation  
_

 _It flows like a river through the soul  
_

 _Protects, proceeds and perseveres  
_

 _And makes us whole  
_

 _Minutes turn to hours  
_

 _Days to years then gone  
_

 _But when all else has been forgotten  
_

 _Still our song lives on_

Gazing up at the pale light of the moon, she finished her song slowly but beautifully.

 _How does a moment last forever?  
_

 _When our song lives on"_

The world around them seemed to stop as Ruri concluded her song, an unspoken tension hanging in the room. Deciding to earn the girl's attention, Yuzu gave her counterpart a big of a 'standing ovation.'

Startled by the sudden noise, Ruri whipped her head around to see Yuzu looking at her. Relieved, she quickly composed herself and walked, erm, materialized at the girl's bedside. _"I'm sorry, I didn't mean to wake you."_

"That's okay, I was waking up anyway," Yuzu fibbed, not wanting to remember her nightmare so soon. "That was a beautiful song by the way."

" _Thanks. It was sort of my song with Yuto,"_ Ruri giggled, fondly recalling the first time they shared that song. _"Today was our anniversary. We would have been together three years actually."_

"Oh that's great! What did he get you? Was it something small, something you could wear, some…thing-" Yuzu trailed, before she saw Ruri's eyes beginning to get misty. In her blind joy, she had forgotten that Ruri and Yuto couldn't celebrate their special day together, especially since they haven't actually seen each other since that brief moment when the four of them were revived.

"Ruri…"

Without warning, the tears began to fall and Ruri's sobs filled Yuzu's mind. " _It's not fair!"_ The Xyz girl stuttered between sobs, _"Why did this happen to me? Why did my home have to be invaded because of me? Why did I have to be ripped away from everyone and everything I ever loved, just because someone couldn't let go! I miss my friends, I miss my family! I miss my life!"_ She sobbed before crying even harder.

"Oh Ruri," muttered Yuzu as she instinctively placed an arm around the girl's shoulder, or at least she tried.

" _I'm sorry_ ," she muttered back as she wiped the tears from her eyes. _"Am I being selfish? Don't get me wrong, I love being around you, Serena and Rin. It's just…"_

"Hey, hey, it's okay. I mean, if the positions right now were reversed, I'd be feeling the exact same way." While she couldn't quite fathom the depths, Yuzu did have similar feelings when she first entered the Synchro Dimension; she was scared and missed home, and right now Ruri was feeling the same way.

Looking at her counterpart's still trembling figure, the pink-haired girl tried to think of a way to cheer her up, before an idea came to mind. "You know, I've been thinking lately about finally picking up the other summoning methods." She announced, earning a surprised look from Ruri. "Yeah, well I realized that I'm the reincarnation of a duelist who could use all of the summoning methods and I haven't exactly been living up to my legacy. And I really want to learn Xyz Summoning first."

" _Really?"_ The Xyz girl asked, beginning to understand what Yuzu was doing.

"I need to stop messing around and start challenging myself as a duelist more, and you need something that will make you feel better, so I would be honored if you would teach me how to Xyz Summon."

A wide smile spread across the girl's face. _"Yes, of course! Trust me Yuzu, I promise that I won't disappoint you! You won't regret this!"_

…

"So the next day, we started the lessons. I kept them hidden from Rin and Serena because, well besides not wanting to get them angry about me picking Xyz Summoning first," Yuzu explained as she concluded her tale, "I wanted Ruri to feel like she now had something that was just hers."

All eyes, physical and spiritual were on Yuzu. The truth about why she and Ruri had been so secretive had now become clear to her other two counterparts, who felt bad for trying to pressure the answer out of her. Serena looked over at Ruri, who was standing on the sides holding herself the whole time.

" _Well now I feel like a jerk…"_ The Fusion girl admitted as she awkwardly rubbed her head.

"Wow, I-I didn't even think of that," Yuya stuttered, surprised by what Yuzu had just told him. Looking over at Yuto, he could faintly see tears forming in his eyes as well.

" _I miss you too Ruri,"_ he whispered softly. _"There isn't a day were I don't wish to hear your beautiful voice, or see your beautiful smile."_

"Yuto…"

" _Yeah, I'm with him,"_ Yugo added, looking in what he hoped was Rin's direction. _"I know we've had our fights, mostly because of me, but I want to be able to hold your hand again."_

" _Actually considering all the stuff I did, it's probably safer if I stay here."_ Yuri mumbled, earning him glares from the others for killing the mood. _"But I do admit, it would be nice to finally go off and see what it's like to have my own life."_

" _Even though when we fought it was all his fault, I do miss having Yugo around,"_ Rin whispered.

" _I just… I don't know what to say,"_ Said Serena, who wasn't one for emotional moments.

"My opponent said that Ruri and the others were just ghosts," the pinkette revealed, having left that part of her story out on purpose. "I told her she was wrong and that the three of them were still here, but the truth is she has a point. A while back, we had hoped that there would be a way to separate all of us and give the other's their own bodies back but…"

"This isn't fair." Yuya said as he looked out at the cityscape, "Why did Leo Akaba have to start that war. Everything was fine until he-" he trailed before looking back at Yuzu, who was staring down at the grass beneath her feet. Wishing to comfort her, the young man draped his arm around her.

Unaware to either of them, someone was hiding in the shadow of the trees a few feet away from them. "That's them?" the person asked aloud. "The dragons are right there."

"Yuzu, I promise, we will find a way to make everything right with all of us." Wrapping his hand around hers and placing it against over his heart, Yuya locked his gaze with Yuzu's. "No matter how long it takes, I will find a way for all of us to have our own bodies again."

Eyes softening and a lips curling into a smile, Yuzu gave a small but joy-filled laugh. "You are too good to me you know? Now come on, let's finish this food before it ge-"

Before she could finish her sentence, a blinding white light suddenly appeared behind the two of them. Barely having enough time to turn their heads around, both Yuya and Yuzu felt an immense pressure surge through their bodies. Dropping to the ground, they managed to make out what looked like two silhouettes, one of a person, and the other of some kind of angel.

And then everything went black…

….

"What is happening!?" Demanded Reiji as he and the other Lancers walked into the control room of the Leo Corporation, multiple charts on the monitors going crazy. Wavelengths were surging up and down, beeping sounds were resonating throughout the large chamber and the lights were going haywire.

"What could be causing this?" Dennis wondered as he scanned the monitors.

"All our scanners in Maiami City have picked up a massive spike in energy!" One of the employees shouted.

"Is this because of another duelist from the Dark Dimension?" Sawatari gasped, dreading the idea of another attack so soon.

"No, it's something different! In fact," another worker shouted as the word 'Natural Energy' appeared on the main monitor, "this is the same readings from when Arc V was split back into the four dimensions!"

"The same!" Sora parroted as he nearly dropped his lollipop. "Where is it coming from?"

"It seems to be centered at Maiami Park!"

"That's where Yuya was taking Yuzu for a date!" Gongenzaka shouted, fearing for his closest friends.

"Bring up security feed at once!" The LEO Corp. CEO ordered. Obeying him, some employees pressed buttons on their desks and brought up footage of a gigantic pair of golden wing raising from the city park. Shocked by the sudden image, no one noticed that moving across the wings were multiple symbols, the very same ones that were on the cards used to defeat Zarc.

"We have to get over there now!"

….

It wasn't just the Pendulum Dimension that saw the wings. Across the Xyz, Synchro and Fusion Dimensions, everyone caught a brief glimpse of the shining, wings.

In the Ritual and Link Dimensions, Kasumi and Nova stopped what they were doing as the gems on their bracelets began blinking rapidly.

"What the…" Nova whispered.

"This has never happened before." Kasumi muttered.

In Link VRAINS, Yuta was dueling someone as Storm Rider, when suddenly Tri-Tail Link Dragon began roaring louder than it had ever roared. Meanwhile outside Domino, Yuji was taking pictures when Burning Flare's card began to pulse with light. In both cases, the same pain that Yuya felt, they were feeling.

"What is this?" Yuji gasped as he struggled to stay standing.

"It's like I'm being ripped apart." Yuta panted.

…

" _Do you feel that?!" Dark Rebellion howled as the four dragons sensed a presence they had not felt since…_

" _That power, this warmth," Clear Wing whispered softly as he was bathed in the energy from the wings._

" _There's no mistaking this," Muttered Starve Venom as he looked down, seeing flowers begin to bloom in the desolate land he and his brothers dwelled. "Only one being could have this power. The card that belonged to Ray…" he started to say before Odd-Eyes finished his train of that for him.  
_

" _Biograph Magician."_

…

Before anyone could react, the police had closed off the park. Officers were investigating the appearance of the strange wings while the fire department looked around for the source. The Lancers were lucky to get in.

It was Kurosaki who had found Yuya and Yuzu, both unconscious and covered in dirt, clothes slightly ripped. The group gathered around their comatose friends as Sawatari called the hospital.

"What could have done this?" Gongenzaka wondered aloud. First the time freeze, then the Dark Dimension and now this? Too much was happening too fast.

"Hey you guys!" Called Dennis, who was looking behind a bush with eyes wide as saucer plates. "I don't want to be 'that guy' but we have more problems on our hands. Six, to be precise."

Curious as to what the Entertainer meant, the Lancers gathered around him, only to be just as surprised as he was. Sawatari even fainted from the shock.

"Is that…" Kurosaki started, unable to form words.

Lying down across the grass, was Yuto, Yugo, Yuri, Serena, Rin and Ruri, all having their own bodies back.

"It seems this mystery is only getting deeper." Reiji whispered.

….

Elsewhere, within his chambers, Cronus watched the scene unfold. As he saw all eight reincarnations of Zarc and Ray be wheeled into an ambulance, he pulled out a card from under his robes.

"It seems that Mayu's quest to stop us from obtaining the dragons has hit a snag in the road. Just as you foresaw…" he whispered as he looked down at the card.

"Chronograph Magician."

* * *

Biograph Magician

2400 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ Level 7/ LIGHT/ Fairy/ Effect

 _*unrevealed*_

*New* Chronograph Magician

2000 ATK/ 1700 DEF/ Level 6/ DARK/ Spellcaster/ Effect

* _Unrevealed*_

* * *

 **BOOM! Wham-shot Ending!**

 **Still not sure how I did, mainly because I don't think non-dueling chapters are my strength. Lot of stuff happened in this chapter.**

 **First we have the dragons, who talk about the Dark Summons and how three of them still haven't forgiven humanity but Odd-Eyes has, or at the very least began to. Of course, pay close attention to the thing Odd-Eyes quotes, and then re-read the scene were Cronus is talking to Yusuke.**

 **And of course, there is some added details involving Zarc and Ray's past. Considering how there is now someone else connected to them, I've decided to justify it as "Leo only told his side of the story, and even then not the whole truth." Which Sawatari of all people pointed out, so you know it's serious.**

 **Then we are introduced to some more villains; Yusuke the anti-villain, Venus the ditzy but loyal one, the almighty Cronus (Who, unlike Leo, is going to actually be sympathetic) and VECTOR! Trust me, he's gonna be fun! #FavoriteVillain (Is that a thing, I don't really do social media.)**

 **A little FruitShipping fluff before we find out why Yuzu learned Xyz Summoning. Yeah I know having Ruri sing the Celine Dione song from the live action remake of Beauty and the Beast was probably INCREDIBLY cheesy, but I stand by my decision, I thought it felt like something she would do.**

 **And of course, now the counterparts all have their own bodies again. To everyone who was wondering if I would give them their own bodies back, let me just say:**

 **Was I not making it obvious enough?**

 **Heck, last chapter I flat out said that it was COMPLETELY UNFAIR that both sets of counterparts were stuck in one body a piece. Seriously, what were the writers thinking? You know, when Arc V was coming to the end, I would have forgiven the writers for everything they did wrong if Yuzu was the Ceremonial Battle. But then it turned out to be Reiji, but even then I still would have forgiven them so long as everyone got their lives back. But no, instead they try to 'Egao' everything away!**

 **(For the record, I actually don't mind Reira being a baby though. She never really had a 'normal' life; being raised in a war-zone, losing her identity, adopted by a woman who only saw her as a tool for revenge against the Idiot-Leo, forced to save the world. If anything being a baby is a fresh start for her).**

 **But now that the other three sets are back, expect all of them to get the respect and attention they deserve. In fact, next Duel is Yuri and Serena VS, well that's between me and Donny.**

 **SO, since I've got double the reviews to answer; I'll do it by reviewer.**

 **Shimmering-Sky: Glad you liked the duels, and thank you for being so supportive after what happened.**

 **Epsilon Tarantula: Well thank you for liking the duels despite the use of the Signs of Renewal stuff. Don't worry, despite those being included, this story will not end up going in that direction. And thank you for being supportive.**

 **Donjusticia: Glad you liked the duels and the culture of the Dark Dimension. And seriously, WHY DID THE SYNCHRO PALADINS VANISH AFTER SEASON 2?!**

 **SSJGamerYT: A thank you!**

 **thetiger39: Yuzu getting spotlight is always a good thing. And to repeat, only the Dark Summoning Methods and (a few other cards for the Arc V characters) will be borrowed from Signs of Renewal.**

 **I'm just glad that so far, VRAINS has been great with females. Now let's hope the writers don't blow it. (Knock on wood!)**

 **HunterHQ: Thank you for being supportive. And as for you questions on how I'm going to tie everything together, don't worry, I have a keikaku for the situation. And how do you know the Dark Dimension's Dragon is Dark Synchro, huh? That place has got a lot of Summoning Methods so you don't know what summoning method it is!**

 **Next Time:**

 **Chapter 7: Rebirth**

 **In a strange flash of light, Yuya and Yuzu find themselves separated from their counterparts. As Yuto, Yugo, Yuri, Serena, Rin and Ruri are welcomed 'back to life' with open arms, the eight youths spend the day together. At the end of everything, Yuri approaches Serena, attempting to become friends, however…**

 **Basically that means no dueling until around the end of the chapter, but for all you PredatorShippers, you're going to like these next two chapters.**

 **Farewell and see you next time!**


	7. Rebirth

**I'M ALIVE! I'M NOT DEAD!**

 **Vector:** ***mutters something under his breath. You guys don't need to know what it was, just know that he pushed a button***

 **Yusuke!**

 **Yusuke: On it!**

 **(Summons his dragon which promptly eats Vector)**

 **Ignore that, I'm exhausted and just got over a massive case of writer's block…. And I'm just now realizing the play on words, or whatever the correct term is.**

 **But I've kept you guys waiting long enough so, let's give some old friends a warm welcome back. Let's also give the amazing and marvelous Donjusticia a hand for his assistance in writing the Counterpart Game Night scene!  
**

 **Arc V and Yugioh, not mine, kapeesh!?**

* * *

 _The gentle sound of a young girl's giggle filled the air like the flapping of a butterfly's wings. That girl was running alongside the silhouettes of two young boys. All three of them were obscured by the rays of the sun. Beyond one of the boys, four large and familiar shapes followed behind them._

 _Suddenly the three stopped as the girl found a trio of cards lying face down at her feet. Just as she reached out her hand, one of the boys beat her to it and grabbed all three cards._

" _Woah! These are cool," he said as he gazed the artworks of the cards. "Shame they don't have any effects though, they would have been great in my deck!" The boy boasted proudly._

" _I want one," the girl said, only to be shot down by her friend._

" _No way! Finders keepers!"_

" _M-maybe you should let her look," the other boy stuttered as he fiddled with his fingers. "We all f-found them at the same time, a-and there are three of them."_

 _The more confident boy groaned, but after receiving a bit of a glare from one of the outlines behind him, he reluctantly gave in. "Fine. But I grabbed them first, I get first pick!"_

 _The girl laughed at her friend's attitude, trying to act tough when he wasn't. "It's fine. It doesn't matter to me, I'd be fine with whichever one I get."_

" _Oh really," the boy holding the cards said with a smug look on his face. "Then you won't mind taking the girl one now, would you?" He mocked, holding out one of the cards towards her._

" _Not at all!" She replied, taking the card from her friend, who realized that she really was fine with whichever one she got._

" _I walked right into that one…." He muttered before he took the card with the weaker stats and held it out to his other friend. "I want the other one, so by default you get this one!"_

" _Oh man, I wanted a strong one!" The shyer boy wined, earning an annoyed groan from the four behind them. "I mean, no offense but I'm just a little tired of losing to you guys all the time."_

" _Don't beat yourself up. When I'm grown up, I'm gonna be the World Champ! There won't be a single person in the world who doesn't know who I am by then!_

" _Of course, you'll still have to get past us," the girl reminded, attempting to dial back her friend's pride. "Even if Daiki's not that good a duelist now, he'll be just as powerful as you by then Zarc."_

" _Th-thank's, Ray." The nervous boy, Daiki, replied as a light blush appeared on his face._

 _Young Zarc scoffed playfully. "Of course I'd still be stuck with you two. I couldn't get rid of you even if I tried! I can see it now; the World Duel Monsters Champion, Zarc, and his entourage, Akaba Ray and Katsuragi Daiki!"_

 _The three kids laughed, as well as the four others behind them. Despite his ego, Zarc did have a massive soft spot for his friends._

" _Well, let's make a promise," Ray said as she held out her new card, Zarc and Daiki doing the same. "Just like we found these cards together, the three of us will always be connected. Even in the worst of times, nothing will split us up."_

" _Yeah!"_

…

 _Chaos._

 _It was all that Yuya could see. The screams of innocent people filled the air, merging with the crackling flames. The silhouettes of two dragons; one black as night with a familiar demonic shape, and the other being white as snow with angelic wings, clashing against one another. At the sky's peak, a green glow hovered above the war zone, before a massive roar echoed throughout the battle field._

 _Yuya didn't have time to react before a dragonic head emerged from glow and fired directly at him._

…..

Yuya catapulted upward, breathing heavily. "What were those dreams?" he asked himself before looking around. He was no longer in the park, instead he was in strange, all-white room. Turning to his right, he saw Yuzu lying down on a bed, beginning to stir.

"Yuzu," he called out. "Are you alright?"

The pinkette turned towards him slowly and nodded. "Yeah. Everything's a little fuzzy, but I feel okay."

Yuya smiled, grateful that she wasn't hurt. Trying to remember what had happened, the last thing he remembered was a bright white light suddenly appearing out of nowhere while they were on their date. "What do you think…." He began to ask before he heard a familiar groan.

"Oh, I feel sick." Came Yugo's voice, "I think I'm gonna throw up!"

"Well if you are, just do it in the bathroom. These sheets are white Yugo."

"Ugh, you're such a nag Rin!" Yugo whined before everything went silent. Yuya and Yuzu looked over the boy's shoulders to see Yugo _and_ Rin sitting upright in separate beds. The four of them just starred at each other in silence, before another voice broke it.

"Well." Said Yuri, who was leaning on a wall next to Serena's bed as she awoke. "This is interesting, wouldn't you say?"

The Pendulum and Synchro counterparts didn't know what to say. Last they checked they were stuck sharing a body. So they did the only logical response.

The screamed at the top of their lounges.

"WWWWWHHHHHAAAAATTTTT!?"

From outside their room, Reiji chuckled a bit. "It seems they've woken up. Let's greet them, shall we?"

…

After a few more minutes of screaming, the room returned to silence. Reiji had entered previously, followed in by Yuya's parents, Yuzu's dad, Kurosaki, Sora, Gongenzaka and Mieru (much to Yuya and Yuzu's dismay).

"DARLING!" The petite Ritual duelist cried as she attempted to hug Yuya, only to be held back by Gongenzaka. "Are you alright? When I heard what happened, I ran straight here! I had to go through a lot of guards by the way!"

Yusho smiled a bit, amused by the girl's actions. "Our son is really popular I see."

"Yeah, just like his dad." Yoko told her husband with a teasing smile. "Of course that means he's going to pick one woman and stick with her for the rest of his life."

"Mom!" Yuya complained, blushing as red as his hair. "Is now really the time to say stuff like that?"

"Yeah, I mean," an equally annoyed Serena whined. "If I wanted to hear endless romance talks, I'd watch Ruri and Yuto all day!"

"Speaking of which, where are Yuto and Ruri?" Kurosaki asked, eager to finally see his sister and best friend after so long.

"Well," Yuri said as he walked over to a door on the other side of the room. "And I'm not entirely sure. But based on their yearning for each other, stay with me, in addition to the weird noises coming from behind this door, now I could be wrong, but," he clasped the handle in his hand, "I conclude that they are currently making out inside this closet!"

Yuri opened the door, and low and behold he was right. The two Xyz counterparts stood in the middle of the closet, embraced in the other's arms with their lips pressed right up against each other. Their touching moment was interrupted, however, once Yuri loudly cleared his throat. The two stopped their make out session and turned their heads to see everyone present staring at them.

"AH!" They shrieked as they separated from each other's grasped.

"Yuri!" Yuto shouted angrily, "What the heck! You could have knocked!"

"Well it could have been worse." The Fusion boy said with a bemused smile on his face, "I could have interrupted you two while you were having some _real_ fun."

"LALALALALALA!" Yugo blabbered with his fingers stuck in his ears, "IF I DON'T HEAR IT'S NOT TRUE! IF I DON'T HEAR IT'S NOT TRUE! IF I DON'T HEAR IT'S NOT TRUE!"

"Psst," Sora whispered to Yuya, who continued to look at Yugo unendingly. "I thought you said Yuri was done being a creep."

"Well," the red head replied while he rubbed his head. "To be fair, I never said anything about his sense of humor."

"Um, this is really interesting." Shuzo said awkwardly, "But can someone tell Kurosaki to let those two go before they suffocate?"

"Huh?" Kurosaki didn't realize that in hugging Yuto and Ruri, for the first time in two years, he had been cutting off their air supply. He looked down at their faces to see they were almost blue. "Oh sorry," the Raid Raptors duelist said as he let go, Yuto and Ruri gasping for air immediately after. "Just really had to do that."

"Forget that! Did you see your face just now?" Serena shouted, pointing at the Xyz Duelist. "That has got to be the biggest smile I've ever seen!"

"I have to concur." Yuri added, eyes wide in disbelief, "That has got to be the most horrifying thing I've ever seen. And considering all the stuff _**I**_ did, that's saying something."

Yuzu and her counterparts silently gave Yuri the stink-eye.

"So, I'm glad everyone is having a fun reunion and all, but can someone tell me how the flip we all have our own bodies again?!" Rin shouted, eyes nearly popping out of her head.

"Easy Rin," Yugo reassured, gently rubbing her shoulder. "Go to your happy place. A white winter's day, cute little snowmen, and the sound of motorcycle engines."

"Yeah…" Rin droned, a pleasant expression spread across her face.

An awkward silence filled up the room as Rin's near trance-like expression caught everyone off guard. Breaking it up by clearing his throat, Reiji earned everyone's attention. "That is the big question now, isn't it? But from what we have seen," he explained as he brought up the picture of the massive wings over the city, "It has something to do with you all being there when this event occurred."

The eight counterparts looked at the image trying to recall what had happened. Last they remembered they were talking about the possibilities of separating from Yuya and Yuzu permanently, when suddenly a bright light, similar to the times Yuzu's Bracelet went off when the four boys where in the same proximity, came out of nowhere. The mysterious figure that resembled the one Yuzu described seeing after her duel in the Synchro Dimension appeared and held out her right arm, the four bracelets lined one after another, and everything faded to black.

After explaining what they saw, Gongenzaka was the first to speak. "So whatever it was that separated all of you…."

"Was the same power that Ray used to stop Zarc and split the dimensions," Sora finished.

"To be able to do such a thing again, my Darling has gotten himself into a massive predicament," Mieru muttered, looking at her crush with concern.

"But what is it?" Shuzo asked, concerned for his daughter(s'?) safety. Already having some people from a new dimension after her, with this strange being seemingly behind her separation from the other three, he was starting to worry. He already had his adult fear fix after the Battle Royal and when Yuzu disappeared after the Zarc battle, he didn't want to worry again.

"We're not entirely sure, but…." Reiji began to explain, before he was cut off by someone entering the room.

"There's no mistaking it. What did this was Biograph Magician."

Everyone already in the room turned towards the door and saw none other than the former professor of Academia, Akaba Leo, walk into the room…

Wearing pajamas and a pair of puppy slippers.

"Reiji, where exactly are we?" Yuya whispered towards his rival, internally questioning why the former interdimensional conqueror was wearing pajamas right now.

"A personal hospital-grade room in LDS," the silver-haired CEO answered back.

"AUGH!"

Everyone turned their attention to see Rin slug Leo in the gut. She moved her fist away and let him drop to the floor, clutching his stomach

"What the heck Rin!" Yugo shouted.

"Sorry, I just had to get that out of my system," the Synchro girl replied, sounding quite proud of herself.

"What did I do to deserve that?" Leo muttered in pain, before swiftly adding, "On second thought, don't answer."

"So, anyway," Yuzu said, trying to get back on track. "You were saying something about some kind of Magician being behind this."

Leo composed himself and stood up, ignoring the pain from Rin's punch. "Right. As I was saying, what had caused the eight of you to separate from each other was none other than Biogra- Shiun'in I am trying to explain here!"

Sora had been laughing the entirety of Leo's attempted explanation. "I'm sorry," he said as he wiped a tear from his eye, "But it's very hard to take you seriously when you're in pajamas! AHAHAHAHA!"

"Ignoring that," Leo continued, having no choice but to ignore Sora's laughter. "Biograph Magician is one of the Three Universe Magicians; a group of powerful monsters that are said to have helped create all known universes."

"Three? So that means there are two more out there." Gongenzaka said as he turned towards Yuya, seemingly knowing the identity of one of the remaining two.

"Yes. I don't know much about them myself, but I know enough to recognize their work."

"What exactly do you know about these three magicians?" Kurosaki asked Leo, giving the man a hint of a stink-eye.

Leo took a deep breath before continuing. "What I do know is that the Three Universe Magicians were responsible for overseeing the creation and balance of the universe. The first was Biograph Magician, who was tasked with protecting all forms of life and channeling the powers of nature itself. The second, Chronograph Magician, was given the duty of keeping the flow of time stable, and could gaze into multiple different timelines and histories. And finally there was the strongest of the group, one you all should already know about…."

"Astrograph Magician, is it not?" Yuri finished, seeing where the man was going.

"Yes. Astrograph Magician was the leader of the group, capable of creating galaxies and rearranging the cosmos. Separately they were powerful, but only together could they alter the very fabric of existence itself."

"And how exactly do you know this father?" Reiji asked with the interest of knowing.

"Let's just say there is more than one part of my life I wish to forget." The former professor answered, turning his gaze away from the group. "But I will say this; after my time involving the history of the three magicians, I had not heard a word about any of them until the day Zarc used Astrograph Magician to merge with the four dragons."

"But how did Zarc get his hands on the card in the first place?" Yugo shouted, sensing more than a few gaps in Leo's story.

The man didn't answer, which only made Yugo angry.

"HEY I ASKED YOU A QUESTION!" He shouted, causing Rin to hit him on the back of his head.

"Calm down Yugo! Learn to control yourself." Rin chastised.

"Oh look who's talking! Weren't you the one who just punched him in the gut like a minute ago?"

"Well he never got any comeuppance for all the horrible stuff he was responsible for, and I was fixing that!"

While the Synchro Duo continued to go back and forth, Yuri decided to approach Leo, having to discuss something.

"Well, former-Professor. I believe we have something to address; my cards." Yuri stated.

"What cards?" Yuya asked.

"A long time ago, after Leo here took me under his wing, he confiscated several Fusion Monsters from me, leaving me with only my dragon."

"Oh, that explains it." Sora said, earning the Fusion boy's attention.

"Explains what?" Yuri asked with a raised brow.

"Why despite being the Fusion incarnation of Zarc, Yuya had more Fusion Monsters than you." Sora stated, "In fact, I didn't think you had any other Extra Deck monsters at all!"

"What!" Yuri cried, offended by the idea that he had only one Fusion Monster. "Show of hands, who else thinks that?"

Literally everyone (except Leo) raised their hands in agreement.

"Well, that smarts," Yuri muttered. "But for the record, Reiji's dear old daddy here took them because he encouraged me that my dragon was the only thing I'd ever need!"

"Father," Reiji said as he looked at Leo, "Please remind us all again why you thought letting Yuri run around and listen to his inner demons was a good idea?"

Leo rubbed the back of his shiny head awkwardly. "I may have been a little bit biased against the four of them..."

"A little?" Yuzu asked dryly.

"You were literally going to kill us." Yuto pointed out.

"Point is," Yuri interrupted, looking at Leo with a hint of disgust. "I want my cards back."

Sighing, Leo turned to Yusho. "Is my desk still in the office?"

"Yes," the entertainer replied.

"In the back of the draw on the top left is a key. The key is for a box I keep hidden in a safe behind the tacky painting on the walls. Yuri's cards are in there."

"Wasn't that tacky painting a Christmas gift from us to you?" Yoko asked, remembering the façade Leo put up when he said he loved it.

Reiji stepped into the middle of the room, adjusting his glasses. "Well, no matter the circumstances, what's done is done. The eight of you now once again have your own bodies, so that means the preparations must be made."

The eight counterparts looked at Reiji with puzzled looks. "Preparations?"

"For the six others to return to their home Dimensions."

Silence. In all the chaos that had just happened, they had forgotten that, now that Yuto, Ruri, Yugo, Rin, Yuri and Serena had their own bodies again, they would have to leave. They all had forgotten the very idea, and it was, in all honesty, a little heart breaking.

"What's wrong?" Shuzo asked, concerned by his daughter's expression.

"It's just," Yuzu began slowly, "After sharing a body for so long, it's a little sad, having to see all of these guys go back to your homes."

"Yeah," Yuya added, giving his counterparts the same look as Yuzu. "I'm happy for you guys, but at the same time…"

"Well," Yusho said as he stood in between the eight counterparts. "Let's not make today a day to be sad. Rather, we make today a day to be happy. The six of you can finally return to your loved ones."

He turned to his son and his girlfriend. "The rest of us will take care of everything. In the meantime, why don't all of you spend one last day together before they have to leave."

"You sure dad?" Yuya asked his father.

"Of course. Now go out and have one last hoorah."

….

Agreeing with Yusho whole-heartedly, the eight counterparts left the Hospital wing, while the others went off to finish getting everything ready for the departure.

"Here are your Duel Disks," an LDS employee said as she rolled up a cart, displaying the duel disks that belonged to Yuri and the others. Yuto and Ruri grabbed the disks that they had used prior to Heartland being invaded, Yugo and Rin took the disks that could be attached to a D-Wheel.

Serena however, took a different disk. After Yusho had been instated as the head of Academia, the 'shield model' had been removed, and replaced with that of the ones used by the Fusion branch of You Show. Her new disk had no differences from those, apart from the magenta border.

"Feels good having one of these on your wrists again, doesn't it?" Yugo asked.

"I missed carrying one of these around." Yuto remarked as he placed the device on his wrist. "What about you Yuri, you glad to have a duel disk again?"

The Fusion boy didn't reply. He didn't even hear what Yuto had asked him. He was looking down at his new duel disk with hesitant eyes. Slowly stretching his trembling hand, Yuri started to grab the disk as dozens of horrible memories played in his mind; attacking innocent civilians in the Xyz Dimension, hunting down Rin and Ruri and dragging them back to Academia, carding the students who abandoned Academia trying to do the right thing, dueling against Yuya before Zarc possessed them and revived…

The one thing that was consistent: The wicked smile on his face.

Retracting his hand, Yuri nearly shrieked as the horrid flashbacks ended. Ever since the war ended, he had been plagued with vivid reminders of everything he had done. Each and every action was just another black mark on an already blemished record.

"Are you okay Yuri," asked Yuya.

Snapping out of his panic, Yuri replied yes. "Yeah, I just felt a little weird taking up a new duel disk, that's all."

If anyone else noticed anything, they didn't say.

"And also," the employee said as she pulled out a fancy looking box from the cart. "I believe these belong to you girls as well. They were found nearby when you all were brought in."

Slowly opening the box, the four girls found themselves looking at the contents in shock.

It was their bracelets. The same ones that had been wearing their entire lives until after their revival inside of Yuzu. The four pieces of jewelry had not come back with them, so why is it they reappeared now?

Before anyone could asked anything, Yugo right past them and straight out the door, yelling at the top of his lungs.

"HELLO WORLD!"

…

Mayu was overwhelmed.

Pacing back and forth with a hectic breath, she tried to process what had happened. No one was looking, she had the perfect opportunity to grab the four dragons and run. No one would be any wiser, and Cronus would lose valuable pieces in his plan….

Until Biograph Magician and her _bleeding heart_ revealed herself and separated the eight children from each other.

"Calm down," she whispered, "Slight set back. Now that the four boys have been split, they're probably going to all head back to their home dimensions. Meaning if we want to steal the dragons, we need to do it now."

" _Or we can just ask them for help? Now there's an idea."_ Biograph snarked, something out of character for her.

"No. This isn't their fight." Mayu objected. "This is between me and the Priests..."

"… _and the dimensions that Cronus will eventually send people to in order to obtain the Duel energy to power the Chronos. Against the combined forces of the Temple, you can't face them all."_

"Well what do you expect me to do, go up and say 'Hey I'm from the dimension that's about to spark another war. Wanna help a traitor and deserter stop them?' Yeah, that'll go over well."

Biograph frowned as she looked down at the girl. _"What ever happened to the light you had in your heart, Hikari?"_

Hikari….

The name that she was forced to abandon when she joined the Duel Temple. The identity she lost over the years, the sweet and innocent light that was snuffed out and replaced by a bitter and lone-wolfish girl she was now.

"Don't call me that," Mayu hissed venomously as she clenched her fist until her knuckles turned white. "I abandoned that name when I entered the Temple, just as I forsook the one they handed me."

" _No, you haven't,"_ Biograph stated firmly. _"You may have left the Priests, but you still call yourself 'Mayu'. That proves that, despite your insistence, Cronus' hold over you hasn't been broken."_

"For someone who's supposed to be empathetic to the struggles of life, you're not doing a very good job at realizing when no one needs you." Mayu shot back, trying to maintain her composure.

Sighing, Biograph said, " _I know you blame me for getting involved in your life, just as I know you resent me for separating you from the one person you still had, and for all that I am sorry. But I also know how unhappy you were in that terrible place. You had the greatest doubts when Cronus unveiled his plans to start a new war, which is why I called out to you that day"_

"That or I reminded you of Ray?" The hooded girl hissed.

" _Despite your resemblance, I know who Akaba Ray was, and you are not her. You are you, though which identity is entirely your decision. But that is not the point, you made the choice to do what you felt was right, not to follow Cronus' plan. I have lived for millennia, I can go on for eternity knowing you blame me for everything, but know that I will also be grateful to you for all times."_

Mayu answered reluctantly. "You are a self-righteous egomaniac, but you're right. It was my decision, and I have to live with it. But even still, I am not dragging other people into my fight. That's exactly what Cronus is doing….."

" _Very well_ ," Biograph said eventually.

….

"Crazy, Keep on Driving," Yugo sung loudly, much to the others' discomfort.

Right after leaving LDS, Yuya and Yuzu took the others out, and started shopping. According to Yuzu, the counterparts needed a change of outfits. Something about needing to look good for when they go back home or something. In any case, the group went over to the nearest placed that sold clothes and started looking.

Remarkably, both Yuto and Ruri found outfits that looked exactly like their regular outfits from before the invasion of Heartland. Replacing Yuto's punk-style attire was a black shirt underneath a black and cream colored jacket, black pants with a belt around his waist, and simple shoes. Ruri had abandoned her worn-out clothes in favor of a knee-length, yellow dress over a cream colored neck shirt, and a pair of white high heels.

Yuri, meanwhile, discovered a simple outfit, which resembled clothes that he had worn as a child; a purple long-sleeved shirt, with a black collar and orange buttons running down the front. He also had white pants and brown shoes.

Yugo and Serena, on the other hand, had not chosen to get anything for themselves, either because they didn't want any new clothes, or because they found it to be a waste of time.

Now they were just waiting on Rin.

"Yugo, if you don't stop singing, I will take Yuzu's fan and personally hit you with it." Yuto threatened. Yugo's singing wasn't that bad, but his pitch was terrible.

"Sorry, I'm just antsy that's all." The synchro boy said before turning in the direction of Rin's dressing room. "Could you hurry up in there Rin?"

"Don't rush me Yugo," she replied. "Besides, I want this to look good."

"Yeah Yugo, have a little patience when it comes to girls and fashion." Yuri said, putting his foot in his mouth.

"What's that supposed to mean?" Rin asked, irritated as she continued dressing.

"Well, I just always figured that you'd have some kind of fashion skills," the fusion boy added, realizing that the situation would not end well for him. "I mean, I thought girls liked shopping or something? Wouldn't you do this kind of thing frequently?"

"Yes because an orphan girl born and raised in the slums of a crack pot society where one percent of the population got literally everything would be able to go shopping for clothes rather frequently." Rin snarked, causing Yuri to feel embarrassed.

"Could you just come out now!?" Serena cried out.

"Alright, what do you guys think?" Rin said as she stepped out of the room, everyone looking at her in awe.

Rin now stood before them, wearing an outfit that was almost identical to the one that Ray Akaba had worn in the past. Almost identical. Rin's new outfit lacked the thigh strap that Ray wore, and this outfit had some different colors; green instead of purple and the blue was more of an icy blue instead of periwinkle. And yet, she looked so much like Ray…

"I figured that Yuzu shouldn't be the only one carrying on Ray's memory, and since you boys were carrying on Zarc's legacy, I decided I should do the same too." She explained as she twirled around, allowing her friends to get a look at her new outfit. "Do you not like it or…."

"No, no, you look great," Yuzu said, a little lost for words. "Man, I wish I had that idea."

"Well maybe they still have some of these outfits left. But I'd need your size."

"Don't worry. According to Yugo, we're all the same size." Yuzu said, giving Yugo the stink-eye.

"Oh we are, are we?" Rin asked Yugo in an eerily clam voice, one that Yugo recognized; he was in deep trouble.

"Um…" Yugo muttered, trying to change the subject. "Yuto wears lavender underwear!"

"Yugo!" The Xyz boy shouted, furious that his Synchro counterpart revealed that embarrassing fact. Said counterpart began running around the store, Yuto chasing after him.

….

With the outfits paid for, the group of eight finally went on their merry way, and their first stop was at the local roller-rink.

"Come on, it's easy," Said Yuya as he effortless moved backwards on the roller skates he had gotten from Allen. "All you have to do is find your balance, and roll."

"Easy for you to say," Yuzu objected, holding onto the side of the rink. "You've had a lot of practice!"

"WOOAH!" Yugo screamed as he fall face first onto the floor. "I can ride a motorcycle at high speeds, and yet I can't stay balanced on these, not cool." He complained, face muffled by the floor.

While the three of them messed around, the other five sat on the sides. Serena watched on with a piqued interest, somewhat amused by the spectacle. The Xyz counterparts sat down at a table together and had lunch, excited to be together again after so long.

As for Yuri, he sat at a table next to Rin, and it was awkward. The Synchro girl didn't speak to him, not that Yuri could blame her. The only time they had interacted in the past was when he was hunting her down like a cat hunting a mouse. The stereotypical comment he made before probably didn't help.

"So, what was it like, having to grow up for most of your life with Yugo?" Yuri asked, desperately trying to break the ice.

"You've spent the last two years rooming with him that should give you an idea." Rin answered bluntly, not bothering to look Yuri in the eye.

"Okay then." The Fusion boy whispered awkwardly, not expecting her answer.

" _But you should have,"_ a voice in his head hissed. _"Did you really expect her to be nice to you after you ripped her away from her home and everything she ever knew?"_

"I'm gonna go and get a drink," Rin said as she abruptly stood up and walked away.

"I'll be here, then." A deflated Yuri said, realizing Rin probably wasn't going to sit near him anytime soon.

Yuri sighed. "Nice going me."

Rin meanwhile, pulled up a seat next to Serena, glad to have gotten away from the cabbage headed boy.

"Yeesh, you look like someone died." Serena remarked.

"Thanks." Rin dryly replied. "I just had the most awkward five minutes of my life. For the life of me, I don't know why I chose to sit next to Yuri."

Serena rolled her eyes, not in the mood to hear about other people's problems. "I'm gonna get a snack. You want ice cream or something?"

"Sure," Rin answered. "I'll take anything, except for strawberry."

Serena raised an eyebrow. "Why?"

"Well," Rin said nervously, "I'm kind of allergic."

"How allergic?"

"She bloats up like a puffer fish with a rash." Said Yugo, who was currently face down on the floor after failing at skating, again.

"Yugo!"

…

The day continued on pretty normally for the group of eight. They took a brief stop at an arcade, where were Yugo got addicted to a motorcycle racing game (partially due to the fact he missed his D-Wheel), Yuya and Yuto teamed up and played an FPS game, and most of the girls competed against each other in a rhythm game (which, attracted more than a few fan boys.)

The Fusion counterparts however, merely stayed on the sidelines and watched.

By the time they were done at the arcade, it was roughly four thirty in the afternoon. With a few hours left, the eight had agreed to go to Yuya's place for some fun.

"Okay, snacks are stocked, emergency numbers on the fridge, and Yusho called, Yuri your cards are on the counter," Yoko said as she placed a jacket on. Some members of her old biker gang called and they made arrangements to hang out tonight. "Remember to feed all the animals at five fifteen."

"We got it mom," Yuya said as he rushed his mother out the door. "You don't have to worry about us."

"Well," Yoko sighed, "Alright. But one last thing, if a fight breaks out, take it outside."

"Let's hope it doesn't get to that point," Yuya replied dryly, secretly questioning why that would happen."

The sound of revving engines came into the background, signaling that Yoko's friends had arrived. "Have fun kids!'" She shouted as she stepped outside, leaving the eight alone.

"Yuya, you have the coolest parents ever," Rin remarked, secretly wishing they were her parents.

"Thanks."

"So can we start playing already?!" Yugo whined, much to the chagrin of the Xyz duo, who were trying to get comfortable before the evening started.

"Calm down banana head," Serena loudly reprimanded as she took a bag of popcorn out of the microwave. "You have got to work on your patience."

"Banana head?" Yugo parroted. "Well at least it's better than calling me Fusion."

"So what are we going to play," Ruri asked, seeing as how the group hadn't actually decided on what to do.

"Well, there should be a couple board games laying around." Yuya said as he began brainstorming. "Wait!" he said, snapping his fingers before rushing upstairs. Grabbing something from his room, the Pendulum duelist returned a few moments later holding a box, depicting multiple first-generation Duel Monsters, a couple dice on the side.

"Dungeon Dice Monsters," Serena read aloud. "What's that?"

"It's a game produced by Industrial Illusions. You know, the company that invented Duel Monsters." Yuto explained, having seen the game beforehand. "It just didn't become as globally successful as Duel Monsters."

"If by 'globally successful' you mean the thing the world revolves around," Yuri muttered, having long since accepted the fact that Dueling was the center of everything across all four dimensions.

"But it still has a following," Ruri added. "I remember this one time when I saw a few children playing the game on my way home from school. They seemed to be having a lot of fun."

"Looks fun, I wanna play." Said an impatient Yugo, aching to do something.

"Slow down Yugo," Rin reprimanded. "We have to all agree on playing first. And since we barely know the rules, we need to go over them first."

"Oh, shi-" Yugo began to curse, before he realized Rin was giving him a very intimidating death glare "-ttake mushrooms."

"Better." The Synchro girl droned.

"So..." Trailed Yuya, a little intimidated by the Synchro duo's antics. "All in favor of playing, raise your hand."

The vote was unanimous for yes. Yuya carefully opened up the box and removed the contents; the game board, a few packets of die, the official game guide, and a few other knick-knacks. The Pendulum counterpart took a few minutes to read from the guide in order to help everyone understand the rules. Since the maximum number of players was four, it was decided that they would all break up into teams of two.

And then everything started to go down hill.

"Obviously, we know how this'll go. We group ourselves by dimensions." Yuya declared.

"Really?" Yuri asked, earning everyone's attention. "That feels kind of, cliche. I think we should be allowed to pick whoever we want."

"Why? Gotta problem with your partner," Serena asked, a hint of venom in her voice.

"No. I'm just saying maybe I wanted to team up with Yuto or Yuzu." The Fusion boy explained.

"I think we should go by dimensions." Ruri said, trying to keep this from erupting even further.

"Well of course _you_ do. You and Yuto are probably going to make out every five minutes." Yuri snarked, "And I thought Yugo was all touchy-feely."

"HEY!" Yugo shouted from the other side of the board, "I am not that touchy-feely!"

"My fan, Serena's fist and Rin's knee. What do all of those things have in common?" Yuzu asked rhetorically.

Yugo was about to answer, before Rin whispered something into his ear. Presumably, it was not to answer that question.

"Okay, so how about we all calm down." Yuya calmly interjected. "Maybe I was being a little hasty about this. Yuri's right, we should be allowed to pick and choose our teammates."

Yuzu responded by giving Yuya a silent look, one which he understood immediately.

"And I pick Yuri as my partner."

Yuri knew what the look meant; she wanted Yuya to watch him in case he got out of control again. Sighing, Yuri went along with the decision.

Serena picked Ruri, citing their prior teamwork while under the Parasites' control as the reason. "We worked pretty well together, considering the circumstances."

Rin, surprisingly, chose Yuto as her partner. "Did I ever actually interact with any of you boys other than Yugo during the Academia war?"

That left Yugo and Yuzu working together. Neither objected to the idea, they felt it was a good pairing.

"Alright," Said Yuya as he finished distributing the dice between teams. "Let's play..."

"Psst," Yugo whispered over to the Yuto/Rin team. "If you guys go after this guy, I won't summon anything on my next turn, and you guys'll get a free space to Dimension a dice." He offered, referring to the monster that was threatening his and Yuzu's shared Heart Points.

"Wha-you can't do that!" Objected Yuri, who was co-owner of the monster that was endangering Yugo. "That's against the rules of the game!"

"It's fine Yuri." Yuto said through gritted teeth.

"No-no it's not!" The Fusion duelist objected as he stretched his hand over and grabbed the guide. "You can't make deals like that in this game anymore than you can in Duel Monsters." He grumbled angrily as he flipped through the booklet. "Okay, here we go. Right here! It clearly states that 'Gentleman's Agreements' and such actions may result in the banning of players in tournament play."

The seven other counterparts all reacted to this in negative ways. Statements of 'This isn't a tournament!' and 'There's nothing wrong with people making deals!' could be made out through the cacophonous argument.

Yuri, not in the mood to deal with another argument, flung the guide book behind him... and accidentally broke a pretty expensive looking vase. "You guys aren't playing by the rules!" The cabbage head protested.

"Didn't know you cared so much about following the rules." Rin snarked as she rolled her eyes.

"I always play by the rules. In fact, whenever there was cheating going on when I was dueling someone, it was always my opponent because they knew they couldn't beat me without breaking the rules. Like now."

"Yes, because burning someone's hometown to the ground and kidnapping is _very_ much in the rules." Ruri sarcastically replied.

"Woah, that was out of character!" Serena shouted as she looked at her partner with a shocked expression.

"My point is that you two shouldn't agree with Yugo's blackmail." Yuri contended

"It's not blackmail!" Objected Yuzu.

"Okay, okay calm down guys!" Yuya said in an attempt to restore the peace. "How about we just don't make any more deals like this and get back to the game."

The seven other players grumbled in agreement. Yuto took three dice from his Dice Pool and rolled. He then proceeded to move one of his and Rin's monsters towards the one threatening Team Yuzu/Yugo and destroyed it in battle. Yuri frowned, expecting something like this to occur.

"Our turn!" Yugo declared as he swiped some dice and threw them. Two Summon Crests and an Attack Crest. "I pass this turn."

Yuri grumbled something foul under his breath.

As the game continued, Yuri found it becoming increasingly clear that everyone was trying to gang up on him, not helped by his partner failing to realize this. Secret agreements were made in silence, even though Yuya had tried to ban them. At one point, after destroying a monster that was putting pressure on Rin and Yuto's team, Rin responded by destroying the very same monster that saved them.

"Well maybe I don't like playing strategically, maybe I just want to have fun, rather than win at any cost like _someone_ I know." The Synchro girl curtly replied when Yuri asked her why she had wasted a move on him.

Then everything came to a head when Yuzu took her turn. "I use up three Movement Crests to move our Seiryu down the Dungeon Path, and then use an Attack Crest to attack Yuri and Yuya's Red-Eyes Black Dragon."

"OH come on!" Yuri shouted at the top of his lungs as his monster was destroyed. "Every one of you guys is ganging up on me!"

"Yuri, she's allowed to make moves like that." Yuya stated, trying once again to prevent an argument from erupting.

"Then I guess it's true what they say. Love _is_ blind!" The Fusion Counterpart shot back. "Ruri and Serena's Panther Warrior was right on top of them, and she went out of her way to go after us!"

Well-" Yuya began, only to be cut off.

"And what about Mr. Egaoplant and Miss Green Apple over there! I helped them and they stab us in the back! This isn't a three against one, it's six against one. No, seven because my partner is being a useless clown trying to make everyone hold hands and sing Kumbaya!"

"Calm down Yuri!" Shouted an angered Yugo.

"This coming from the guy who basically killed Yuto because you thought he was me. You could have waited like five minutes for him to explain what the hell we did to Heartland before you axed him off you know!" Yuri growled, growing angrier by the second.

"And that was your fault because you tried kidnapping us!" Yuzu injected, throwing her hat into the ring.

"Oh, I'm sorry Miss Damsel-in-Distress, did you say something through your screams for someone to save you for the _umpteenth time_!" Yuri fired, earning him a painful whack courtesy of Yuzu's fan that knocked him to the floor.

"Yuzu!" Serena cried out.

"Maybe we should just take a break," Ruri suggested, only to be ignored.

"Sweet little songbird doesn't have the stomach to watch people fight, why am I not surprised!" Yuri hissed as he got back on his feet, holding the back of his head where Yuzu's fan hit him.

"Yuri!" Yuya shouted, his patience run dry. "We were trying to have a fun evening, and your constant complaining isn't helping!"

"Oh, I'm sorry," Yuri apologized sarcastically. "Did I put a snag in your plan to make everyone across the Multiverse smile like a bunch of mindless sheep? News flash Yuya! You can't make everyone smile! Look at Zarc when he tried appeasing everyone and see where that got him! You're a _Third-Rate Entertainer_ if you think you can try and a _First-Class Moron_ if you honestly believe that the war ended because of you and your lackluster entertainment routine alone!"

Silence. Nothing but silence. Everyone starred at Yuri in shock, mouths agape and eyes wide. No one had ever said that Yuya was a horrible entertainer (except Jack Atlas, but he was trying to help Yuya grow) or that he was a fool for thinking the war ended all because of him.

"And as for pacifying Zarc, _PLEASE_ , we all know Reiji did the heavy lifting!" Yuri added venomously before he stood up. "You know what? I'm done, I quit, I am leaving the game!" He fumed as he stormed in the direction of Yuya's room. "Tomorrow, I'll be back at Academia were I can finally have some peace and quiet!"

Once he reached Yuya's room, he grabbed the knob and ripped the door open. "HAVE A WONDERFUL NIGHT!" He shouted mockingly before slamming the door closed, the force knocking another vase off of the table and onto the floor where it shattered into a few dozen small pieces, while a second one rattled almost over the edge before managing to settle down again. Before Yuya could breathe a sigh of relief, Yuri quickly opened the door again, deliberately smashing the remaining vase to the ground, and slammed the door.

Still feeling plenty of rage surging through him, Yuri punched a nearby wall and howled out in what could only be described as a burst of primordial anger, to the point were it seemed as if the roar of the Supreme King Dragon overlapped with Yuri's own roar.

The remaining seven stayed silent, no one really knowing what to do next.

Clearing her throat, Serena got to her feet. "Well, I'm gonna go get some fresh air. If I'm out there more than five minutes and my turn comes, drop me out of the game."

Ruri nodding in agreement, Serena walked over towards the screen doors before she opened them up and stepped outside. Immediately. she was met with the cool evening air. Letting out a sigh, Serena gazed up at the sky to see the full moon slowly rising.

She had always felt a connection to the moon, even before she discovered the truth about her past life and the forces that split the dimensions. Whenever she was put on lock down for disobeying Leo Akaba's orders during her time at Academia, she always found herself gazing towards the night sky for comfort. The serene light of the moon bleeding through her window, the glimmering stars shining in the sky and the crisp air could always appease her.

But tonight, she needed comfort more than ever. This whole day, she had felt something was off, like everything she did was predetermined by some other power. The other girls were in the dark about this, it's why she had been so uninterested in the games at the arcade earlier. Part of the reason was because she was in the dark about how she felt. Words couldn't describe how, awkward it was, to finally have her own body again and to choose her next move. The feeling was just, out of place to her.

Shutting her eyes and taking a deep breath, Serena let the calmness of the night envelope her as she slowly began to move. Two steps forward, one step right, spin around, one step back...

...

Yuri lazily opened his eyes, despite his better judgement. Stretching his arms out, he found himself starring at a picture of an eleven year old Yuya and his, well _their_ , father.

"Oh right," the Fusion boy sighed, the events from earlier coming back to mind. "That was a total bust."

Getting out of the chair, Yuri looked over at the clock on Yuya's nightstand to see it was just after eleven at night. "Wonder if those guys are still going at it?"

Wondering out of the room, Yuri entered the living room and raised an eyebrow at the scene before him. Game pieces and cards were scattered throughout the living room floor, Yuya was laying upside down off of the couch, Yugo was face-first in the popcorn bowl, while Yuto and the girls were dogpiled on one another.

"Not even gonna ask." Yuri remarked before realizing something was off. "One, two, three, four, five, six…. Okay there should be one more."

A brief movement in the corner of his eye caught Yuri's attention. Turning his head a smidge to the right, the Fusion boy caught what appeared to be Serena's silhouette moving on the other side of the now opened screen doors. Carefully maneuvering himself past the unconscious counterparts, Yuri slowly approached the glass screens, and was rather surprised to see that the movement was actually Serena dancing.

It wasn't one type of dance though, her movements indicated a blending of different styles; classic ballet, flamenco, at one point she made a move that looked like it was pulled straight out of a cheerleading routine (Yuri made a mental note to keep that to himself). Yet it was all tied together by her graceful and swift movements, each one illuminated by the glow of the full moon.

As he continued to watch the normally tomboyish Serena dance, a thought popped into Yuri's head. After Ray split the Original Dimension, she intended for both her and Zarc's reincarnations to become friends, or at the very least be somewhat close to each other. He and Serena however, never had the chance to do so thanks to the Professor, well ex-Professor, meddling in the way. And the only time they had ever seen each other face to face during the war was when he was trying to take her back to Academia, before Yugo showed up and then Zarc tried to revive (Yuri made another side note to thank Yuzu for preventing all hell from breaking loose right then and there.)

Despite that, combined with his prior actions during game night, part of him was hoping that he could at least find some common ground with the girl, part of him didn't know why.

His thoughts were interrupted as Serena pirouetted a good five feet in the air and landed gracefully on her toes. Impressed by the girl's dance moves, Yuri clapped, startling Serena while alerting her to his presence.

"How long were you watching?" The Fusion girl asked, nay, demanded.

"Long enough," Yuri replied as he leaned on a wall. "You're really good you know."

"Well, thanks." Serena said, not used to people complementing her dancing, mainly because until today no one else, not even the other girls knew about her secret hobby.

"Did you learn to dance like that while you were at Academia, or does it come naturally?" Asked Yuri, attempting to further the discussion.

"It's actually a little bit of both." Serena replied, reminiscing about the times she would begin dancing while locked up in her room. "Whenever I needed a way to pass the time after the Professor put me on lockdown, I'd just get this kind of, instinct of whatever you could call it, which made me start dancing. Not much else to it except that the instinct tended to be strongest when the full moon was out."

"Really," the Fusion boy said with an interested look. "Did you have any preference on what kind of dance you did?"

"Not really, I just did whatever felt right at the moment. Sometimes it would be ballet, others it would be hip hop, and one time – WHY AM I TELLING YOU THIS!?" She shouted once she realized who she was talking to. "What's your game?"

"No game, honestly," Yuri objected, throwing his hands up. "I'm just trying to get to know you."

"And why are you so interested in getting to know me?"

"Because according to the universe you're supposed to be my bestie or guardian angel or whatever and frankly you've got a lot of missed work days to catch up on!"

"Oh, like I'm responsible for everything you do!" Serena objected.

"Well it wouldn't hurt you to step up your game," Yuri snarled with a glare.

Scoffing, Serena began heading back inside, only stopping when she heard the cry of 'wait.' She turned her head back just a bit to see Yuri looking, rather depressed.

"I'm… sorry. I've just had a really bad day and, I just wanted someone to talk to." Slumping onto the ground, Yuri rested his head down. "Though I don't know why I bother. You girls hate me with every fiber of your being for all the stuff I did, and the guys are the only ones who can tolerate me. I've tried really hard to change from how I was back then, but now I feel like I'm slipping back into that sick little monster. I just know that I'm in for all kinds of trouble once I step foot on Academia again."

Looking down at the sorrowful boy, Serena felt something she never imagined she could feel for Yuri, pity. From what Yuya had said about him, Yuri still had some trouble forgiving himself for everything he did during the Professor's war. Though the other three boys had learned to embrace his somewhat snarky sense of humor and the occasional banter with Yugo, there was still something troubling Yuri that they noticed but purposely chose not to bring up.

He had not yet forgiven himself entirely for what he did.

"Evil isn't born, it's made." She whispered, earning Yuri's attention. "Something I remember from a dream. It means that no one just comes into this world full of dark intentions, but that the pain and trauma they go through forces them to turn to darkness."

"But that's a matter of perspective," Yuri countered as Serena slumped down beside him. "Life isn't so black and white. The line between good and evil can become distorted, and what one considers evil, the other considers righteous. Just look at the Professor."

"Yeah," the girl snarked. "Starting a war, kidnapping little girls and killing a bunch of people just to get his daughter back was idiotically stupid but he thought he was in the right."

"Or maybe he just thinks on a level too high for our meager minds to comprehend," Yuri suggested, before realizing what he said. "Yeah no, he was definitely being an idiot."

Serena placed a hand over her mouth to muffle a giggle. Yuri actually had to do a double take to process what just happened; he made someone else laugh, and it felt…. kinda nice.

"Alright, I'll talk. Ask me anything you want to know but," the blue haired girl explained, "Just know, that after I answer those questions, you have to answer them too. You can't expect this conversation to be me spilling my secrets."

"Fair enough." Yuri shrugged, "Okay first question, what was your home life like before the war?"

Serena's somewhat bemused expression slowly faded as she tried to propose an answer. "I… don't really have an answer to that. All I know is that I'm an only child, I never knew my parents, although considering the circumstances behind my 'birth'," she said that part in air quotes, "I guess you can say that I don't have any parents."

"I'm in the same boat. I can only remember ever being in Academia." Yuri added, attempting to make Serena feel better about herself.

"Yeah, well the closest thing I had to a dad was the Professor and it was just, so frustrating. It felt like he was never paying attention but he couldn't take his eyes off me. He was always locking me up in some little dungeon when I misbehaved and then the next minute he was leaving me alone to deal with his dumb plan." Serena hissed, anger stemming from hindsight.

"Believe me, it's better than what I had to go through," Yuri whispered back.

"What! You'd honestly want to deal with kids calling you the Professor's Pet, or say that daddy was so overprotective you had to wear ski gloves when you dueled so you wouldn't get a papercut!"

Yuri briefly looked at Serena with the most bewildered expression he had ever made. "Well, first of all I don't know who you hung out with while you were at Academia, but let me just say they need to come up with better insults. Second of all, yes, I could deal with an overprotective father figure. And while it may not be my place to say this, you should be somewhat glad the Professor locked you up."

"Seriously, what?!"

"Okay that came out wrong. What I mean is," Yuri explained, "That despite the zealousness, he only cooped you up because he wanted to protect you. He cared for you, sure only because you were part of his real daughter, but look at me. He only cared for me because he needed a pawn that could card people. I spent so long carding people to make him happy, when all along he planned on probably murdering me in my sleep! And all because of something I did in a past life. Compared to me, at least what you got was something."

Serena was about to counter, when she stopped to realize Yuri wasn't wrong, entirely. Sure, Leo never cared for her as her own person and any instances of compassion came from the fact she could revive Ray, but he was the closest thing to a real parent that she had. Yes, she couldn't understand why he was locking her up and trying to keep her from participating in the Invasion of Heartland at the time, however, now she saw that part of the reason was because he was trying to keep her safe. Granted this protectiveness was directed more towards Ray than herself, but still.

"Sorry again, I-" Yuri began, only to be cut off.

"No. I guess in some ways, he was trying to be a half decent dad. Still didn't justify what he did to the Xyz Dimension, but now I can kinda see where his protectiveness was coming from."

While the two Fusion Counterparts continued their discussion, they were unaware that Mayu was walking down the street towards the Sakaki household, silent as a viper.

"So, speaking of carding people, did you ever card someone?" Yuri asked in an attempt to keep the conversation going.

Serena winced, remember the small handful of duelist she carded. She had just managed to sneak out of Academia (with Barrett watching over her), and aimed to prove herself to Leo by taking out any refugees from the Xyz Dimension. Of course, unaware that most of Standard was uninvolved with the Professor's war, coupled with the fact she didn't know the difference between the duelists of the two worlds, she chose to card any Xyz Duelist she could find. In hindsight, the decision was very bittersweet; she managed to discover the horrid truth about her homeland and what they did to the Xyz Dimension as well as ally herself with the Lancers, but now she had to live with the knowledge that innocent people had most likely been traumatized by her effectively killing them.

"Um, less than ten," the Fusion girl eventually answered uncomfortably.

"Lucky," Yuri drowned.

"What?!"

"You carded only a few people, but that only because you didn't know the truth about what happened in Heartland, and you truly thought Academia were the good guys. I, on the other hand, didn't care at all for the Professor's backstory or motivations when I carded people. At first it was mainly to get Leo's approval, but as I kept going down that dark road I just stopped caring. I carded people for the thrill of it, the excitement of destroying anyone foolish enough to face me. Then once I won, I turn them into a card and revel in their final screams." The Fusion Boy explained slowly, a thousand images flashing before his eyes.

"Even now I can still hear those shouts in my dreams. After everything I've done, I just can't forgive myself for destroying so many lives."

A depressing silence briefly enveloped the two counterparts of Fusion, before Serena broke it. "So that's why you freaked out when you got your new Duel Disk."

Yuri looked at Serena with a nervous expression, surprised that she managed to pick that up.

"Yeah, I kinda noticed." Serena sighed, turning her head up towards the moon. "We're not that different. Thanks to Leo Akaba, our lives got royally screwed up."

"Well, cheers to being a couple of screw-ups." He sarcastically said as he pretended to hold a toast.

Serena gave a brief smile. "You know, this whole day I've felt like something has just been, wrong with me. I don't know what it is, but I don't feel like I'm in control of what I do anymore. It's hard to explain-"

"Shut up."

"It's weird having a body again and-"

"Shut up." Yuri hissed.

"Hey, you can't just-" Serena began to exclaim, only for Yuri to place his hand on top of her head and manually turn it around, revealing a person in a hooded cloak ominously standing over their counterparts.

"Wha-HEY!" She shouted as she leapt from her crouched position and ran towards the mysterious person.

Mayu didn't have time to react as Serena pounced on her, knocking them both to the ground and landing on top of the still asleep Yuya (who had mysteriously fallen off the couch), and awoke him with a loud grunt that startled the remaining five counterparts.

"WHOWHATWHEREWHENWHYHOW!?" Yugo blurted out as he whipped his face out of the popcorn bowl, Yuto and the girls trying to gently move out from their pile. Key word being trying.

Mayu pushed Serena off of her before leaping off of Yuya. As quick as she could, she ran towards the table (where the eight had placed their duel disks for the evening) and grabbed Yuya's.

"That Duel Disk," Yuzu muttered as she stood up, recognizing the shape and small blade close to the stranger's elbow. "She's from the Dark Dimension!"

"Grab her!" Yuto shouted, not wanting to let a repeat of what had happened in the Synchro Dimension when they tried to get answers.

Yugo was the first to respond. He dashed towards Mayu as she finished grabbing three cards out of the Extra Deck compartment. Ducking out of the boy's grasp, the Dark Dimension girl swiftly kicked Yugo, well, he put it best:

"Right in the car batteries!" The banana-headed boy shouted, voice becoming higher from the pain.

Needless to say, Yugo was out.

Yuto and Yuya attempted to capture Mayu next, but the girl was too swift. Leaping over their heads, the Dark duelist landed behind them before knocking them off their feet with a low sweep.

The three remaining girls all tried to surround her and rush at her at the same time. But, this was foiled by Mayu leaping out of the way, causing Yuzu, Rin and Ruri to run into each other and fall to the ground.

"Well, that just happened." A wide-eyed Yuri remarked after watching the whole scene unfold.

Dashing back towards the table, Mayu plucked Yuya's deck out of his Duel Disk before ripping the top card of his deck. As the last one standing (literally), Yuri had no choice but to try his luck. He ran at the girl in an attempt to grab her. However, just as with the others, Mayu noticed his attempt to stop her.

Placing her hand over her duel disk, she twisted the body around so that the small saw blade pointed outwards and whipped it in front of her just as Yuri came close.

Startled, Yuri leapt back, mind racing on what to do next. Searching for anything that could help him, his eyes fell on the cards that she now held in her hands;

All four of the dragons.

"So that's your game." He whispered softly, "You wanted the dragon just like the other guy."

"You're mistaken if you think I serve Cronus," Mayu shot back. "Trust me when I say that this is what's best for all of us."

"As if!" Serena shouted as she leapt on top of the girls back. Stumbling about, both failed to realize the bladed Duel Disk begin glowing. When the weight of Serena became too much for her to bare, Mayu stumbled backward and accidentally cut open a strange portal that the two fell through.

"Serena!" Yuri cried, shocked by how fast everything happened. He only had a few seconds to think as the portal began to close. Whipping his head around, Yuri saw that his new Duel Disk was lying right next to him. Sighing heavily, Yuri grabbed the duel disk and jumped into the portal as it closed completely.

"WHAT THE HECK JUST HAPPENED!" Yuzu shouted as the dust settled.

…..

Normally, one would expect a mysterious glowing portal to open up in someplace strange or wondrous; another dimension for example. However the one that Mayu and the Fusion Counterparts fell through opened up in a valley just outside the city. The two landed on their backs, Serena no longer atop of her enemy.

"Give them back!" Serena demanded as she tried to grab Mayu, only to fail as the girl back flipped onto her feet.

"I suppose we should have expected this." Came the sound of Yuri's voice as he exited the portal. "Evil never takes a holiday."

"Believe me, I don't want to do this." Mayu warned as both Fusion counterparts stood together. "Just let me take the dragons somewhere safe. I mean you all no harm."

"Like we're going to trust you after one guy tried to run Yuya and the guys over while another tried to kidnap Yuzu!?" Serena asked/shouted rhetorically. "Yeah, we'll do that and Yugo'll stop shouting his catchphrase!"

"See, this is exactly why I didn't want their help," Mayu whispered, low enough that Yuri and Serena didn't hear her. Turning her attention back towards her opponents, Mayu raised her arm as she rotated the body of her Duel Disk back to its default position. A blade of Solid Vision, similar in shape and size to the one Serena had seen during Yuzu's duel against the 4th Daughter, manifested as Mayu declared, "If you wish to fight, then I will oblige. But you'll regret this."

Sharing a look, both Serena and Yuri silently agreed to work together in the duel that was about to occur. It would be a bit of a challenge, as this was not only the first time they were dueling together, but the first duel they had faced in two years. Ignoring the challenge, both of them activated their new Duel Disks, the scimitar-like blades manifesting.

"Field Mahou, Crossover." The monotone voice of the Fusion duo's Duel Disks declared as platforms of blue light appeared, before the Action Cards dispersed from a sphere of light and rained down.

"Duel!" The three shouted simultaneously, prepared to fight with everything they had.

 **Serena**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **Yuri**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **VS.**

 **Mayu**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hands**

"The first move is mine!" Serena shouted as she slammed a card down. "I summon Moonlight Blue Cat!"

Surrounded in a column of the moon's light, one of Serena's most recognizable monsters; a blue-colored cat girl wearing a leotard, with a crescent-moon mask covering her eye, appeared on the field with a playful growl.

 **Moonlight Blue Cat: 1600 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

"I set one card and end my turn." Serena declared as the image of a card back briefly appeared in front of her.

'That's it?" A perplexed Yuri asked, expecting a bit more.

"I can't do anything yet, so at the very least I can set myself up." She replied in an irritated tone.

"Alright," the Fusion boy shrugged. "My turn, Draw!"

Looking down at his starting hand, he plucked up a monster that was perfect for going first. "I summon Predator Plant Cephalotus Snail."

Emitting a sweet yet disgusting aroma, a pitcher plant with small teeth lining the rim sprouted onto Yuri's field.

 **Predator Plant Cephalotus Snail: 1300 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Plant/ Effect**

"And then I activate a Continuous Spell, Predator Planter!" He continued as he played the card. "Once per turn, this handy little card allows me to Special Summon a Level 4 or lower Predator Plant monster from my hand or Graveyard at the cost of its effects. I use this effect to call forth this monster, Predator Plant Squid Drosera!"

Rising up from the soil was a green plant, with a handful of eyes and flytrap mouths hanging down like tentacles.

 **Predator Plant Squid Drosera: 800 ATK/ 400 DEF/ DARK/ Level 2/ Plant/ Effect**

"I end my turn with a face down. Now, let's see what you've got."

"Draw!" Mayu declared as she grabbed the top card of her Deck before plucking one from her hand. "I activate the effect of Serpendine - Amber the Rookie Soldier! By discarding this card, I can add any Serpendine card from my Deck to my hand."

An ominous looking portal opened up, a yellow aura in the shape of a woman with a tail in place of legs entering as Mayu's deck shuffled itself before ejecting a card.

"Next, I beckon forth this monster. Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic!"

A blinding flash was emitted as Mayu's monster slithered onto the field. Ivy was a thin woman, with purple eyes and shoulder length lime green hair, covered by a headdress that resembled the pointed snout of a vine snake. Her skin was a dull olive green, her only article of clothing being a green bikini top that covered up her chest. Just like the aura that appeared before, her lower half was a reptilian tail, twice her size and colored a vibrant emerald green. Fiddling around with a dagger covered in a strange green liquid that resembled the fangs of a serpent, Ivy hissed silently as she stood next to her mistress.

 **Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic: 1200 ATK/ 500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Reptile/ Effect**

"Snakes, how appropriate," Yuri quipped.

"And now," Continued Mayu, either not hearing Yuri's comment or not caring enough to remark. "I activate the Field Spell I searched before. Behold, Serpendine Palace!"

The ground below the three duelist rumbled as a massive stone building emerged under their feet. It wasn't so much a Palace as much as it was an Aztec Temple, decorated by many stone carvings that resembled snakes with large fangs. Mayu smiled as she walked backwards into the inner sanctum of the temple, beckoning her opponents to follow.

Fearlessly rushing in, Yuri and Serena now stood in a room decorated with mural of colorful snake women. Whether it be depicting a sacrificial offer or an army of snake women clashing against an unknown force, each mural was different from the last.

"Charming, but what exactly does it do?" Serena asked, sounding rather deadpan.

"Thanks to my little landscaping act, the Original ATK of any monster other than a Serpendine monster will be cut in half," Mayu explained as her opponents' monsters were briefly covered in a gray aura that drained their strengths.

 **Moonlight Blue Cat: 1600ATK – 800ATK**

 **Predator Plant Cephalotus Snail: 1300ATK – 650ATK**

 **Predator Plant Squid Drosera: 800ATK – 400ATK**

"Ivy no kouka. Once per turn, I can send one Serpendine monster from my Deck to my Graveyard, and for the remainder of the turn, Ivy will gain that monster's effects. I send Coatlicue the Clutch Mother to the Graveyard in order for Ivy to obtain her effects." Mayu drawled as she deposited a card into her Graveyard slot.

"And when Coatlicue is sent to the Graveyard, I can Special Summon one Serpendine Token for each monster my opponent controls! Come forth, my servants!"

Three sets of glowing eyes appeared in the dark corners of the temple room, before a trio of snakes with silvery scales slithered out and positioned themselves to strike.

 **Serpendine Token X3: 800 ATK/ 0 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal**

"There's got to be more to this than just summoning a few tokens," Serena muttered under her breath.

"I activate the effect of Ivy, inherited from Coatlicue!" Mayu declared, gesturing towards Ivy as the green serpent emitted a healing glow. "Once per turn, I can gain 500 Life Points for each of my Serpendine Tokens!"

 **Mayu LP: 4000 – 6500**

"And finally," she added, "I place two cards face down, and end my turn."

From within the shadows of the Palace room, Biograph Magician silently watched on as the three dueled. She turned her attention to Mayu - no, Hikari – then towards Yuri and Serena before returning her gaze to Hikari.

" _Hikari,"_ the angelic magician whispered, _"Once you dueled with the brilliance of the sun, and now you fight with the venom of the serpent. You and I may not see eye-to-eye regarding the issue, but I wish you the strength to break free from the influence of the Duel Priests and return to how you were before. Light can never truly erase darkness, but Darkness can never consume light. And somewhere, your light still shines faintly in that darkness."_

* * *

 **Finally, finished! Oh, that took me forever!**

 **So, if I'm being honest, this is probably the chapter I'm least proud of, so far at least. I'm not good with 'filler', and yeah, there was some plot and world building going on in this chapter; between Yuya's stupid, ominous foreshadowing dream, Leo both providing exposition about the 3 Universe Magicians and getting some comeuppance, an explanation as to why Yuri only ever used his dragon and the conversation between Mayu/Hikari and Biograph, but I just felt this wasn't my best work.**

 **Though what I am really proud of was Yuri and Serena's conversation. While I do ship them (not as much as the other counterpart pairs though), I really wasn't a fan of their supposed hook up at the end of the show. Mostly because they only shared like thirty seconds of screen time together beforehand and with the context, there was no way they would be even close to friends.**

 **So one of my goals in writing this chapter and the next one was establishing some common ground in that thanks to Professor Bakaba Leo ruining their lives, before having them go all tomodachi on us.**

 **Then I did kinda rush a bit to get to the start of the duel, which thankfully has been scripted for months now, so I've got that done. The bit where Yugo got kicked in the groin was kinda thrown in as a result.**

 ****(Checks To-Do list and sees the final 3 Things)****

 **Okay, 1st: For future reference, I've decided that from now on, should a Duel occur over the course of multiple chapters, all featured fan cards will be included in the final chapter of that duel.**

 **2** **nd** **: Shout-outs to my rather lackluster number of reviews from the last chapter**

 **Shimmering-Sky: Vector is sort-of Zexal! Vector. He's not a Barian, but I already have prepared his reasons for being in the Dark Dimension. And I had to make a third member of the Integration Magician group, otherwise known as the ABC Magicians.**

 **(Get it, because their names are** _ **A**_ **strograph,** _ **B**_ **iograph, and** _ **C**_ **hronograph)**

 **Honestly I just had to give the Counterparts their own bodies. And I have an announcement; After the story concludes its first Arc, I'll be posting a sort of Behind-the-Scenes look before the second arc begins. You guys will see my inspiration and creative process behind the story and a bunch of other stuff. Such as who I would want to voice the OC characters I have created if they were canon. It's gonna be fun!**

 **Donjusticia: Blah-blah-blahbitty-blah YAWN! Thanks for your help with the Dungeon Dice Monster scene.  
**

 **Guest: How did you find out about the mini-Arc where-! Nope, no spoilers, I cannot give that away, it is too many kinds of Awesome to Spoil! But, regarding the interaction between the Original 4 Dragons and the 3 Dragons I've made, you'll see some of that around twenty or so chapters in.**

 **Tnte. Tarrant Hightopp: Hope you enjoyed their interactions, and expect future chapters to explore their budding friendship.**

 **Guest (Sacred Heart): I've been busy and had a major case of writer's block. Like Sky, I have my own Muses, and they were on an Alaskan Cruise for the longest time.**

 **3** **rd** **: Next Time**

 **Chapter 8: Venom of the Serpent**

 **Yuri and Serena face off against Mayu, who has stolen the Four Dragons. As the Fusion Duo overcome Mayu's deadly "Serpendine" monsters, the identity of the duelist from the Dark Dimension is revealed to be….**

 **Spoiler-but-it's-not-really-a-spoiler-Alert: She looks like Yuzu and the girls!**

 **See you hopefully soon!**


	8. Venom of the Serpent

**A double update? SACRILEGE!**

 **Well consider this my way of apologizing for the long hiatus.**

 **Quick thing though, in order to save time, whenever a monster is summoned, its battle position will be determined by whichever stat is in italics.**

 **Yuri's theme for this chapter, "Neophobia" by Nano.**

 **Serena's theme is "Unbreakable" by Fireflight.**

 **Yu-Gi-Oh, not mine. And unfortunately I must keep saying it.**

* * *

The three sets of counterparts still at Yuya's house were anxious beyond belief. On top of everything that's been happening lately, someone breaks in and steals all four dragons, and then the Fusion Duo chase after her through a portal and leave everyone else beyond.

"Come on, pick up Dad!" Yuzu shouted into her phone for the twelfth time in the last five minutes.

"No good," Said Yuya as he ran outside. "No one else is answering. Everyone must be asleep."

"Come on!" Screamed an agitated Yugo, "Why does the universe love messing with us."

"Right now we need to think about finding where Yuri and Serena ran off to." Said Rin before turning towards Yuto and Ruri. "I thought you said you called your brother?"

"Yeah well, I didn't get very far into a conversation. I said some stranger stole the dragons and that Serena and Yuri ran after her but-" Ruri started to explain, before hearing the sound of a car skidding across the road. The group looked over to see a large black car rushing down the street before stopping in front of them, the window opening to reveal Kurosaki driving.

"KUROSAKI/SHUN/NEE-SAN!?" The six shouted simultaneously in shock.

"Get in the car." Kurosaki instructed sternly. Without wasting a second, all six counterparts stuffed themselves in the car, Yuto taking the passenger seat. "I got a tip from Reiji. Yuri and Serena are just outside the city," he explained as the car started moving again.

"Well don't waste a second! That creepy chick in black stole our dragons!" Yugo exclaimed impatiently.

"Calm down!" Yuto shouted from the front. "Besides, just be glad Shun has a license and could drive us all."

"Right…." Kurosaki replied, voice trailing off uncomfortably.

"Oh no, I know that 'Right…..'" Ruri observed nervously. "Nee-san you don't have a license do you?"

"No."

"Do you at least have a permit to drive," Rin asked, just as nervous as the others were.

"I don't."

"Shun, how exactly are you driving this?" Yuto said, bracing onto the side of the car.

"It's no big deal." The older Kurosaki explained calmly. "But one time Kaito, Allen and I stole a car and took it for a joyride."

"YOU WHAT!?" Ruri and Yuto screamed, surprised that the normally stoic Shun would do such a thing. Not because it was horrifying, but because it was so out of character.

"I lost the two of you! I was going through a bit of depression and our friends just wanted to cheer me up!"

While Yuto and the Kurosaki siblings were arguing, the other two sets of counterparts looked at each other uncomfortably. This was going to be a long night…

….

 **Serena:**

 **4000 LP**

 **Controls Moonlight Blue Cat**

 **1 card Set in the Spell/Trap Zone**

 **2 cards in hand**

 **Moonlight Blue Cat: _(1600/2) = 800 ATK_** **/ 1200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

 **Yuri:**

 **4000 LP**

 **Controls Predator Plant Cephalotus Snail and Predator Plant Squid Drosera**

 **Has an active Predator Planter and 1 card Set in the Spell/Trap Zone**

 **2 cards in hand**

 **Predator Plant Cephalotus Snail: _(1300/2) = 750 ATK_** **/ 1200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Plant/ Effect**

 **Predator Plant Squid Drosera: (800/2) = 400 ATK/** _ **400 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 2/ Plant/ Effect**

 **VS**

 **Mayu:**

 **5500 LP**

 **Controls Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic and 3 Serpendine Tokens**

 **2 cards Set in the Spell/Trap Zone**

 **2 cards in hand**

 **Serpendine Palace is face-up in the Field Spell Zone, and halves the ATK of all face-up monsters, except Serpendine Monsters.**

 **Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic:** _ **1200 ATK**_ **/ 600 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Reptile/ Effect**

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal X3**

 **Serena's Turn**

Serena studied her opponent carefully. As long as the Field Spell, Serpendine Palace, was active, the ATK of any monster she or Yuri summoned would automatically be halved. In addition, Mayu's Ivy could send any Serpendine monster from the Deck to the graveyard each turn and copy its effects.

" _She's already used Ivy's effect to send that other monster to the Graveyard, and then she gained Life Points thanks to those Tokens."_ She summarized, anticipating her opponent's most logical strategy. _"She's either going to use the Tokens to Tribute Summon or for some kind of new Dark Summon. But what she doesn't know is that I specialize in taking down my opponent's field."_

"My turn. Draw!" She declared as she stepped forward. Looking at her current hand, she smiled, having exactly what she needed to get rid of all her opponent's monsters in one fell swope.

"First, I Normal Summon Moonlight Green Peafowl!"

Dancing onto the field came a girl resembling an exotic peafowl. Like all of Serena's monsters, she had a gold crescent moon-shaped mask covering up one of her eyes and wore a skintight bluish-green outfit. Dangling from her arms were green feathers, creating the image of wings. Meanwhile, a cluster of large, green feathers trailed down from the back of her outfit, spread out like a peacock's tail. On her head was a crown that resembled a peacock.

 **Moonlight Green Peafowl:** _ **1400 ATK**_ **/ 900 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

"Serpendine Palace's effect!" Mayu declared, pointing towards Serena's monster. "Your monster's ATK is halved. In addition, every time you Normal or Special Summon a monster, Palace automatically summons another Serpendine Token onto my field!"

As Green Peafowl became covered in a gray aura that seemed to weaken her, another snake slithered out from the dark corners of the room and stood in line with Mayu's other monsters.

 **Moonlight Green Peafowl: 1400 ATK - 700 ATK**

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal**

Serena smiled smugly and said, "It doesn't matter how many more monsters you summon, because you're about to lose all of them! Green Peafowl's effect! Once per turn, I can discard one card, and then add a Polymerization or Fusion Spell from my Deck to my hand!"

The Fusion girl discarded Moonlight Tiger, having no need for the Pendulum Monster at the moment. A card slid out from her deck, which she quickly added to her hand.

"With this effect, I add Moonlight Fusion to my hand!" She declared as she flipped the card around, revealing the card to look similar to the classic Fusion card, only this time, Moonlight Blue Cat and Moonlight Purple Butterfly took the places of the dragon and demon, with a crescent moon was superimposed over the fusion spiral. "And then activate it!"

As the blue and orange Fusion portal appeared, both of Serena's monsters gravitated towards the center, before spiraling together in a swirl of blue and green as their master chanted.

"Blue cat that prowls through the darkness! Exotic bird with green feathers! Swarm in the vortex of the moon's gravity and revive with a new power! Yuugo Shoukan! Come to me! Beautiful beast that dances in the moonlight! Moonlight Cat Dancer!"

With the sound of Riq music playing in the background, Serena's signature monster, an elegant cat woman with twin tails, auburn hair, wearing a black and blue carnival outfit and a mask, appeared to the field. Wielding a pair of sharp daggers, she danced in front of Serena with a coy "meow", as if filled with confidence, but was weakened by the Field Spell, nonetheless.

 **Moonlight Cat Dancer: _(2400/2_** ** _) = 1200 ATK_ / DEF 2000/ DARK/ Level 7/ Beast-Warrior/ Fusion/ Effect**

"Because Green Peafowl was used as Fusion Material, its effect lets me shuffle one Moonlight monster from my graveyard into the deck, and then I can draw a card." Serena explained as she returned Moonlight Tiger into the Deck before drawing again.

" _A good strategy. This way she doesn't waste too many resources on Fusion Summoning, while still managing to bring out a strong monster."_ Biograph Magician commented as she watched the duel. _"Of course, I shouldn't expect any less from Ray's incarnations."_

"Next I activate Moon Light Perfume, and use its effect to Special Summon Blue Cat from my Graveyard. And since Blue Cat was Special Summoned, I can target one Moonlight monster I control and double its ATK for the turn."

Serena's cat girl leaped back onto the field, and with her, a shaft of light that shined down on Cat Dancer. After filling the Fusion monster with power, just enough to get her back to normal, the light quickly disappeared.

 **Moonlight Cat Dancer: 1200 ATK – 2400 ATK**

"And now I use Cat Dancer's effect! By tributing Blue Cat, Cat Dancer can now attack all of my opponent's monsters twice, while preventing them from being destroyed by battle the first time!"

As quickly as she appeared, Blue Cat disappeared, the blue scarves of Cat Dancer's outfit beginning to glow. The humanoid feline raised her daggers as she waited for Serena's command.

Yuri, who had been watching his partner take her turn in silence, couldn't help but notice that their opponent didn't even react when Serena said she was going to attack all of her monsters. If anything, she didn't seem concerned at all.

"Battle!" Serena commanded, preparing to get rid of Ivy and all four of Mayu's Tokens. "Moonlight Cat Dancer, attack-"

"It's a trap." Yuri droned, snapping Serena out of the moment.

"What?"

"Our opponent doesn't seem to care about you destroying all of her monsters, and she has two face-downs. This is so obviously a trap." Yuri explained, looking at Serena like it was the most obvious thing in the world.

Despite his warnings, Serena chose to ignore him. "Yeah, well I'm not gonna give her the chance to get a lead over us. Cat Dancer, attack Ivy the Silent Mimic!"

"This isn't gonna work." He sighed, knowing this wasn't going to end well.

Serena had heard Yuri, so she screamed back at him. "SHUT UP!"

" _Yup, she's Ray's reincarnation alright. Skilled and stubborn."_

Cat Dancer leaped towards the green snake woman, daggers poised and ready to strike. Ivy raised up her own dagger and prepared to fight back before Mayu smiled and pointed towards one of her face downs.

"Trap activate! Serpendine Medusa Gazer!" She proclaimed as her trap flipped upwards. "When my opponent attacks a Serpendine monster I control, I can negate the attack!"

A pair of reptilian eyes appeared in between the two monsters, glaring right at Cat Dancer. Pupils slitting, a bright light shined towards Serena's ace, who screamed as the light engulfed her and blinded Serena. When it died down, Cat Dancer was revealed to have been transformed into a highly detailed stone statue, an expression of fear frozen on her face.

 **Moonlight Cat Dancer: 2400 ATK - 0 ATK/ 2000 DEF - 0 DEF**

"WHAT!" Serena gasped.

In response, Mayu strolled forward. "In addition to the attack being negated, the attacking monster is changed to Defense Position. As a bonus, its ATK and DEF are changed to zero and it cannot activate its effects. You should have listened to your friend."

"Told ya so." Yuri whispered, loud enough for Serena to hear.

The blue haired girl growled. Yuri had been right, their opponent had been well prepared for an all-out attack, and she had walked right into it. "Turn end," she reluctantly growled.

"Hey don't beat yourself up," Yuri said in an attempt to encourage his crestfallen partner. "Nine out of ten people would have seen right through her plan."

"How is that supposed to make me feel better!?"

"It means you're special." Yuri replied.

Serena looked like she was ready to strangle him.

"Special, SPECIAL!" Serena roared. "Oh gee, that makes me feel MUCH better!"

"Sorry, first time I've given a pep talk." Yuri shrugged

…

Meanwhile, Yuya, Yuzu, Yugo and Rin were having their own struggle; putting up with the arguments in the car. Yuto, Ruri and Shun had not stopped screaming at each other since they started, and no side was winning. What had once been about Shun hijacking a car for a joyride had turned into a series of random screams and shouts.

It came to a point where the older Kurosaki had had enough and just exploded. "OKAY IF THIS FIGHT DOESN'T STOP RIGHT NOW, I WILL TURN THIS CAR AROUND SO FAST IT'LL MAKE YOUR HEAD SPIN! GOT IT!"

That shut the other two up immediately. Yuto and Ruri looked over at the others, who were trying desperately to ignore everything.

"Is it me is Shun a bit more comical than I remember?" Asked Yuto, who only got a groan as a collective response.

….

"My turn, Draw!" Yuri said as he ripped the top card off of his deck. "Now then, during my Standby Phase, I choose to pay the maintenance cost of Predator Planter and keep it in play."

 **Yuri LP: 4000 - 3200**

"Now that that's done, I summon Predator Plant Ophrys Scorpio. Then since it was summoned, I can use its effect to discard Drosophyllum Hydra and Special Summon Predator Plant Darling Cobra from my Deck."

In a rapid succession, two more plant creatures appeared on Yuri's field. One was a black scorpion with a large stinger on its tail, and the other was a thin, vine like snake with two heads that had petal-like mouths.

 **Predator Plant Ophrys Scorpio:** _ **(1200/2) = 600 ATK**_ **/ 800 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Plant/ Effect**

 **Predator Plant Darling Cobra:** _ **(1000/2) = 500 ATK**_ **/ 1500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Plant/ Effect**

"Because Darling Cobra was Special Summoned, I can add a Polymerization or Fusion Spell from my Deck to my hand. I think I'll add Double Fusion." Yuri explained as he added the card to his hand.

"Double Fusion?" Serena questioned, having heard of, but never actually seeing it.

"Yes it's a bit of an old card, but it's got quite the effect. Watch I'll show you," Yuri said as he activated the card. "Here's the jist of it, I pay 500 Life Points, but I get to Fusion Summon twice for the price of one card!"

 **Yuri LP: 3200 - 2700**

"Using Double Fusion's effect, I first fuse together Squid Drosera and Cephalotus Snail!" Yuri declared as his two monsters gravitated into the Fusion portal.

"Two beautiful flowers with an insect-alluring fragrance! Now become one and transform into the deadly fangs! Yuugo Shoukan!" Yuri chanted as he placed the palms of his hands together. "Appear, Hungering flower that consumes all! Level 7, Predator Plant Chimerafflesia!"

The portal disappeared, and from it came a massive, grotesque plant creature, with multiple mouth-tipped vines branching from the main body. In the center of five large petals, another mouth was wider open, a vile and putrid odor escaping from the maw.

 **Predator Plant Chimerafflesia:** _ **(2500/2) = 1250 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ Plant/ Fusion/ Effect**

"Oh dear sweet mother of, Yuri!" Serena gaped, pinching her nose closed to try and deal with the monster's scent. "What the heck is that?!"

"That would be one of the Fusion Monsters I regained from Akaba Leo. Why?"

"Because I think I liked it better when you had only one monster in your Extra Deck." She replied with a nasally voice.

"Well if you like that, then our opponent's gonna hate this next part. When Squid Drosera leaves the field, it places a Predator Counter on all Special Summoned monsters my opponent controls! And as long as a monster has a Predator Counter on it, it will automatically become Level 1."

A quintet of small, green, plant-like mouths materialized together, before each attaching to either one of Mayu's Serpendine Tokens or Serena's Cat Dancer.

 **Serpendine Token X4: Level 3 – Level 1**

 **Moonlight Cat Dancer: Level 7 – Level 1**

"Great, but you got my monster too!" Serena complained, a little peeved at her partner for using an effect that applied to her monster.

"Well in my defense, it's not exactly that useful right now." Yuri answered, causing Serena to grumble something under her breath. "But continuing on, thanks to Double Fusion's effect, I now fuse together Ophrys Scorpio and Darling Cobra!"

Just as before, the Fusion Portal reopened, and Yuri's two monsters spiraled together as Yuri invoked a new one.

"Two beautiful flowers with an insect-alluring fragrance! Now become one and welcome the beast from the depths! Yuugo Shoukan! Appear, Level 7! Lurking predator who drags prey into the darkness! Predator Plant Utricularia Kraken!"

Bursting up from the ground with a demonic roar came a massive, squid-like monster, similar to Squid Drosera but larger, and its tentacles hanged downward. On each tentacle were multiple little bladder-shaped pockets that seemed to be breathing in and out.

"Utricularia Kraken gains 200 ATK for each Predator Counter on the field! With five, that's an additional 1000!"

"But," Mayu reminded, "Because of Serpendine Palace's effect, your monster's ATK is halved despite the boost!"

 **Predator Plant Utricularia Kraken:** _ **(1700+1000/2) = 1350 ATK**_ **/ 2400 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ Plant/ Fusion/ Effect**

"Now that everyone's all accounted for, I activate the Continuous Spell, Seed Cannon Salvo, and then activate its effect!" Yuri exclaimed, continuing on the momentum he had been building up. "By sending Predator Plant Cordyceps from my Deck to the graveyard, I inflict 300 damage to my opponent and decrease the ATK of all monsters they control by 600!"

The card for Seed Cannon Salvo shot out multiple pink seed-like bullets, that struck all five of Mayu's monsters before hitting Mayu herself. She winced as she was forced to take a knee.

 **Mayu LP: 5500-5200**

 **Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic: 1200 ATK - 600 ATK**

 **Serpendine Token X 4: 800 ATK - 200 ATK**

"And now my prep work is done. Battle! Chimerafflesia attacks Ivy the Silent Mimic! Ravenous Massacre!" Yuri ordered, pointing towards his opponent's monster.

Chimerafflesia roared as it sent its fanged limbs towards the green snake woman. Mayu however, had another trick up her sleeve.

"Continuous Trap activate! Serpendine Defense Mechanism! As long as I control a Serpendine Token, Serpendine monsters I control cannot be destroyed by battle! So even if I take some damage, I won't lose Ivy."

"True but I've still got something in mind. Chimerafflesia's effect! When it battles a monster with ATK different from its original ATK, that monster's ATK is reverted back to normal while Chimerafflesia gains ATK equal to the change! Support Thorn!"

Catching Ivy in its fanged limbs, Chimerafflesia began to secrete a purple liquid that seemed to not only strengthen itself, but the snake woman as well.

 **Predator Plant Chimerafflesia: 1250 ATK - 1850 ATK**

 **Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic: 600 ATK - 1200 ATK**

Mayu snarled, hoping to have to use the other effect of Defense Mechanism later, but now she had no choice. "Defense Mechanism has another effect! During any of our turns, I can target one Serpendine monster I control and make its ATK become double its original ATK at the cost of destroying that monster at the end of the turn! With this, Ivy's ATK becomes 2400!"

 **Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic: 1200 ATK - 2400 ATK**

Quick on his feet, Yuri leaped towards an Action Card at the edge of a platform. Taking a quick look, he smiled before slamming it onto his duel disk.

"Action Magic, High Speed Dribble! All my monsters gain 600 ATK! Strike back, Chimerafflesia!"

 **Predator Plant Chimerafflesia: 1850 ATK - 2450 ATK**

 **Predator Plant Utricularia Kraken: 1350 ATK - 1950 ATK**

Chimerafflesia's mouths and Ivy's dagger traded blows, splattering the green liquid that coated the blade everywhere. Each mouth aimed for the snake woman, either blocked or dodged.

"Action Magic!" Mayu cried out, earning shocked looks from Yuri and Serena, who had been so focused on the fight they forgot to make sure their opponent didn't get any Action Cards.

"Victory Topping! Ivy gains 600 ATK and Cat Dancer is changed to Attack Position!"

 **Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic: 2400 ATK - 3000 ATK**

Dodging one of the maws effortlessly, Ivy summer-saulted in the air and dived towards Chimerafflesia's central mouth, impaling it with her poison coated blade. Chimerafflesia moaned in pain before Ivy ripped the dagger out and destroyed the ravenous flower.

"I activate the effect of Drosophyllum Hydra in my graveyard!" Yuri declared, trying to lessen the damage. "By banishing Cephalotus Snail and then returning it to the graveyard, I halve the battle damage!"

 **Yuri LP: 2700 - 2475**

"Well that didn't work," Serena smirked sarcastically.

Miffed by his failed attack, Yuri had Utricularia Kraken go after one of the Serpendine Tokens. His other Fusion slammed one of its tentacles down on the petite serpent, only for it to come out unharmed.

"You know, those Tokens are really annoying, though at the very least I can get rid of one other than by battle. Once per turn, Utricularia Kraken lets me tribute a monster with a Predator Counter on it to let me draw a card." Yuri explained as one of the tokens vanished.

"Due to the ruling on your Field Spell, Utricularia Kraken's ATK doesn't change."

Mayu smirked, "I'm impressed you know that ruling."

"Well I like to know the ins and outs of card effects." Yuri replied casually. "I then set one card, and then use Predator Planter to revive Squid Drosera. And unfortunately you get another Token."

On cue, both Yuri's monster and another Token popped up on the field, each giving a low hiss.

 **Predator Plant Squid Drosera: (800 ATK/2) = 400 ATK/** _ **400 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 2/ Plant/ Effect**

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal**

"Turn end." Yuri declared, Ivy immediately disappearing afterwards.

….

The others had just hit the outskirts of Maiami, and looked around for any sign of the friends or the thief. Yugo was the first to notice something out of place.

"Has that snake temple always been there or am I going nuts?"

The six looked to were Yugo was looking, and saw the outside of Serpendine Palace. They knew that Serena and Yuri had to be dueling against the thief. Exchanging glances, they all silently agreed on going over there. Well, all except Yugo, who was caught up in his own thoughts.

"Now is that Aztec, Incan or Mayan work?"

"YUGO!"

…

"Watashi no turn. Draw!"

Mayu looked at her opponents. She knew if she was going to get the dragons away, she needed to hurry up and defeat both of them.

" _You are hasty, I can feel it. But you are right, we need to defeat both Zarc and Ray's Fusion incarnations if we are to save them."_ Biograph Magician said to Mayu, who was a little taken aback by her words.

"Hmm, for once we're in agreement." Mayu replied before starting her turn. "I activate the effect of Coatlicue in the Graveyard! Once per turn, I can Special Summon her by tributing one Serpendine Token I control. I tribute one of the Tokens with Predator Counters! Revive, Serpendine – Coatlicue the Clutch Mother!"

One of the four tokens started to transform, throwing off the Predator Counter clamped around its neck. In the snake's place now stood a red woman with curly brown hair that towered over thefield. She had a brown Aztec helmet on her head, and wore no clothes, other than a dress bottom made of multiple green snakes that reached the floor. Affixed to her back was a green and red circular crest, eight snake eyes circling around it.

 **Serpendine – Coatlicue the Clutch Mother: 0 ATK/** _ **2900 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 8/ Reptile/ Effect**

"So that's why she sent that card to the Graveyard before." Serena grunted as she realized her opponent's other goal. "Not just to get Tokens on her field, but to provide herself more monsters later on."

"Maybe, but she's not the only one getting something out of this. Continuous Trap activate!" Yuri declared, one of his cards flipping up. "Predator Planet! Once during any of our turns, if a monster with a Predator Counter leaves the field, I can add a Predator card to my hand."

The card Yuri wanted popped out from his deck; Predator Plant Sundew Kingii. If he managed to make it to his next turn, that card would help turn the tide around.

"I activate Coatlicue's effect. I gain 500 life points for each Serpendine Token on the field. Clutch Binding!" Mayu declared as the eyes surrounding her monster's wheel gave off a soothing light.

 **Mayu LP: 5200 - 6700**

"In addition, as long as Coatlicue is on the field, you cannot target my Serpendine Tokens with card effects or for attacks, nor can you destroy them with card effects. I now tribute another Token to Special Summon Ivy from the Graveyard through her own effect."

Another snake transformed, taking on the shape of Mayu's green snake woman. Both Yuri and Serena inwardly grimaced, not only because they just dealed with Ivy before, but if both it and Coatlicue could revive by tributing the Tokens, there was a good chance that all Mayu's monsters had that effect. So no matter how many times they destroy them, the Serpendine will come back as fierce as before.

 **Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic:** _ **1200 ATK**_ **/ 600 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Reptile/ Effect**

"Next, I Normal Summon Serpendine – Crimson the Burning Venom!"

A new humanoid snake monster appeared on the field. Her skin color was a pale red, with her eyes a sinister yellow, and her shoulder-length curly hair a deep red. Atop her head was a coppery pit viper shaped headdress, and covering her chest was a red bikini top. On her wrist were copper bracelets with red-orange gems that gleamed like flames. Her lower half was a dullish-red snake tail twice her size, covered with hints of blood-red patterns. In her hand she carried a broad sword covered in a red liquid.

 **Serpendine – Crimson the Burning Venom:** _ **1800 ATK**_ **/ 300 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Reptile/ Effect**

"I activate the effect of Ivy! By sending Viola the Berserk Reaper from my Deck to the Graveyard, Ivy copies the effects of Viola for the turn!"

Mayu sent a card from her deck to the Graveyard, causing a purple aura in the shape of a snake woman holding two double-headed scythes to envelope Ivy, a blood thirsty air spreading thoughout the field.

"Next, I activate Defense Mechanism's effect! I target Ivy and double her attack for the turn, but she must be destroyed when it comes to an end!"

 **Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic: 1200 ATK - 2400 ATK**

"This doesn't bode well." Serena muttered, worrying what her opponent was going to do next.

"Crimson's effect! Once per turn, I can tribute another Serpendine and destroy the monster my opponent controls with the highest ATK, and then inflict damage equal to that monster's original ATK! I tribute another Token and destroy Utricularia Kraken!"

The last Token with a Predator Counter disappeared, its essence absorbed into Crimson's sword as the poison ignited, coating the weapon with fire. Crimson stretched her arm and threw her weapon directly at the heart of Yuri's kraken. The plant creature roared in pain as the flames consumed him, before he disappeared in a fiery explosion that threw Yuri against the back of the building.

 **Yuri LP: 2475 - 775**

"Yuri!" Serena screamed as she rushed towards her injured ally. "Are you alright?"

"Let's see. I'm down to one wimpy monster, have 775 Life Points and just got flung against a wall with such force that it's a miracle my spine didn't snap. So yeah, I'm just peachy." The fusion boy replied, voice dripping with sarcasm.

As she watched the scene from above, Mayu saw an image flash before her mind. The situation was the same; a girl was comforting someone who had just taken a major hit in a duel. Something about Serena attempting to help Yuri made her feel, angry, for lack of a better term. It was as if she was watching something from her past that she sealed away and didn't want to remember.

" _Just like back then."_ Shaking her head, Mayu dismissed the thoughts before seeing Serena helping Yuri stand up. She had no time to remember the past, she had a duel to win.

"I switch the final Serpendine Token into Attack Position. Next I battle! My Serpendine Token attacks your Moonlight Cat Dancer!" Mayu declared as her miniature serpent quickly jumped onto the petrified feline dancer, clamping its hot jaws onto her arms before crushing her into rubble. Serena could vaguely see the spirit of her Ace look at her in sorrow, regretting not being able to do better.

 **Serena LP: 4000 - 3200**

"Trap activate! Moonlight Reincarnation Dance! Since a Moonlight Fusion monster was destroyed, I can add two Moonlight monsters from my Deck to my hand." Serena looked down at the cards she added to her hand, hoping that they would be enough next turn.

"Next, Ivy attacks you directly!" On command, Ivy polished her dagger and flung it at Serena, who proceeded to jump from platform to platform until she found an Action Card.

"Action Magic, Selection of Miracle! Battle Damage is halved!"

Though the card saved her from taking a massive amount of damage, it still failed to keep Ivy's dagger from hitting Serena, ripping up her sleeve and letting the poison seep into her skin. The tenacious duelist fell down and landed face first on the floor.

"Serena!" Yuri shouted, taking his turn to be concerned for his dueling partner.

 **Serena LP: 3200 - 2000**

"I'm fine," the girl replied through the pain. "I've dealt with much worse than this."

"You won't be for much longer." Mayu retorted, earning the attention of both the other two duelists. "Since Ivy inflicted battle damage, the effect copied from Viola activates! Ivy is changed to face down Defense Position and all other monsters I control are destroyed, and then my opponent takes damage equal to the combined original ATK of those monsters!"

Ivy became covered in a purple aura that quickly consumed the other monsters Mayu controlled. The green serpent turned into the image of a face down card before the aura took the shape of a set of massive scythes that spun rapidly.

"2600 damage," Whispered Yuri.

"And then, the effects of Crimson and Coatlicue activate! Coatlicue Special Summons a Serpendine Token for each monster my opponent controls, and Crimson inflicts five hundred damage to my opponent for each Serpendine Token I control! So that's another 500 points of damage!"

The spirits of Mayu's two snake women appeared from a portal. Coatlicue hummed in a foreign tongue as another snake materialized, while Crimson waved her now flaming sword in the air, sending waves of fire towards Yuri and Serena. The force of the flames knocked the two back down onto their feet.

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Effect**

 **Yuri LP: 725 - 275**

 **Serena LP: 2000 - 1500**

"And now, the effect of Viola resolves. The two of you are finished!"

As the pair of scythes launched towards the Fusion Duelists, Yuri managed to get onto his feet and dash from platform to platform. At the exact moment he found an Action Card, their friends came into the temple to see him and Serena almost about to lose.

"Action Magic, Flame Guard! Effect Damage is negated!"

Before the scythes could make contact, a barrier of flames surrounded both the Fusion counterparts, both deflecting the weapons and saving them from losing. Out of breath, Yuri fell on one knee, his endurance feeling tested from this duel.

"Yuri!" Yuya called out, earning the attention of all three active duelists.

"Man you look terrible," Yugo added, a little surprised to see Yuri this exhausted.

"Well thank you for that Fusion!"

Right before Yugo could reply with the usual 'It's not Fusion, it's Yugo,' Rin clamped a hand over his mouth, only for it to be licked.

"EWWW! YUGO!"

While no one was watching, Mayu secretly began pressing a few buttons on her duel disk. If she was gonna win this duel, she needed it to be uninterrupted.

"Don't worry, I'm coming in!" Yuya said as he put on his Duel Disk. Before he could take another step however, a wall of white flames surrounded the three duelists, blocking everyone else out.

"Not this again," Serena drawled, having recognized the wall from Yuzu's duel in the Synchro Dimension.

"This wall, it's made of advanced Solid Vision," Mayu calmly stated. "As long as the program in my duel disk is activated, no one can interfere with this duel."

"That's not fair!" Yugo exclaimed, furious at Mayu for using, in his opinion, a dirty trick.

"So to you, 'fair' is ganging up on me and defeating me with superior numbers," Mayu countered sarcastically.

"She has a point." Ruri said, remembering the Obelisk Force, who used the exact same method during the Academia War.

"Plus, there is still the Intrusion Penalty to deal with. Even if we all join in, we'll all be down half our Life Points just for joining," added Yuto.

"Serena! Yuri! Don't give up, you can do it!" Yuzu called, cheering her friend (plus Yuri) on.

"It won't be enough. Now then, if the speeches are done, let's continue." Mayu coldly interjected, "I activate the effect of Crimson in the Graveyard! By tributing my final Token, Crimson is revived!"

The final token on Mayu's field quickly disappeared, and was replaced with Crimson, who hissed at the spectators.

 **Serpendine – Crimson the Burning Venom:** _ **1800 ATK**_ **/ 300 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Reptile/ Effect**

Despite the tight situation, both Yuri and Serena were sort of relieved. With no more Tokens, the effect of Defense Mechanism wouldn't protect any of Mayu's monsters. All they needed to do is draw a card that would either get rid of it or all of their opponent's monsters in one fell swoop.

Their hopes however, were quickly snatched as Mayu played another card. "I activate a Quick-Play Spell, Serpendine Multiplication! I Special Summon two more Serpendine Tokens. Come to me, my servants!"

A set of silver snakes slithered sinisterly onto the field, flicking their tongues and hissing territorially.

 **Serpendine Token X2: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Effect**

"And then, I tribute one Token to summon Viola the Berserk Reaper from my Graveyard by her own effect!"

Replacing one of the little reptiles was a light purple snake woman with jagged purple hair covered by a violet cobra headdress and deranged eyes a lurid blood red. A dark purple bikini top covering her chest, failing to conceal the dozens of scars crisscrossing across her body. In each hand, she wielded a massive double-headed scythe, the ends of the blades resembling snake heads. Twirling her weapons around, the sinister monster gave a deranged roar as she glared down at her impudent foes.

 **Serpendine – Viola the Berserk Reaper:** _ **2300 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ Reptile/ Effect**

"Berserk, yeah that's about right." Serena remarked, a little intimidated by the insane monster.

"By tributing Ivy, I activate Crimson's effect! She destroys the monster with the highest ATK and inflicts that monster's original ATK as damage! Since the only monster is your Squid Drosera, it'll be more than enough to finish you!"

The card representing Ivy vanished as Crimson's sword burst into flames before she threw it at the carnivorous plant. The world seemed to move in slow motion as the blazing sword slowly approached, Yuri actually fearing that this would be the end.

Yuri solemnly looked down, ready to face defeat. _"Serena, good luck."_

"Action Magic, Mirror Barrier!"

All eyes turned to see Serena activate an Action card as she leaped from a floating platform. "With this, Squid Drosera cannot be destroyed by card effects this turn, which means that Yuri won't take damage!" She declared fiercely as a barrier of light surrounded Yuri's monster and deflected Crimson's sword.

"Turn end," Mayu angrily snarled, displeased that she couldn't finish off one of her opponents.

Serena gracefully jumped off a platform and landed on her feet before Yuri, who looked at her in shock. "You, you actually saved me?"

"Duh. Look, I know we aren't the closest, but we got stuck in this mess together, and I'm not letting you fall off this ship."

"Are you trying to help me or make a Titanic reference?" Yuri snarked, silently eyeing Ruri for suggesting they watch that movie before the game night disaster. Said girl seemed to catch onto the hint, as she began rubbing her head thereafter.

"What I'm saying is that you are not losing this duel on my watch. Now are you going to sit around and let me do all the heavy lifting, or are you going to get up and prove why you used to be the best duelist in Academia?"

"Used to?" He parroted, a tad miffed by the comment. "Hey I haven't dueled in a while, but there is no way I'd let my edge go!" Inspired by Serena's unconventional help, Yuri got back up on his feet, feeling ready to let his old self off the lease just one more time and crush whoever was foolish enough to challenge him.

Serena stepped forward as began her turn. "Watashi no turn!"

Taking no time, the blue-haired girl took one of the monsters she added to her hand and played it. "I summon Moonlight Pink Flamingo!"

Appearing from a shaft of light, a young child wearing a pink and white one piece bathing suit, with a pair of ballet slippers on her feet. Covering her eye was a downward facing crescent moon mask, and extending from her arms were pink feathers. With her stylized rose-colored hair swaying about, the child stood on one leg with her knee bent like a ballerina. Winking at the spectators, the young dancer giggled in a rather adorable fashion.

 **Moonlight Pink Flamingo:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ DARK/ Level 1/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

Yuzu, Ruri and Rin all 'awwed' at Serena's new monster, enamored by its adorable looks. Yugo on the other hand…..

"PFMT-HAHAHA! It's-it's Pink! And a flamingo!" He laughed uncontrollably, earning a whack on the head from Kurosaki.

"This is why I try not to use this card." An irritated Serena whispered as another Token popped up on her opponent's field.

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal**

Taking a deep breath (and ignoring Yugo), Serena continued on with her turn. "When Pink Flamingo is the only monster I control, I can banish it and a Moonlight monster from my Graveyard and perform a Fusion Summon! That monster is, Cat Dancer!"

Cat Dancer reappeared on the field, hissing angrily at Mayu, before the Fusion portal opened up. Slowly, the two monsters began to merge together in a spiral of blue and pink, Serena's chant echoing in the background.

"Beautiful beast that dances in the moonlight! Young pink bird taking flight under the moon! Swarm in the vortex of the moon's gravity and revive with a new power! Yuugo Shoukan! Come to me! Supple beast that dances through moonlit fields! Moonlight Panther Dancer!"

Dancer wildly under the light of the moon, a dark-skinned panther woman in a blue outfit that exposed a decent amount of skin descended, uttering the cry of " _Pansaa~"_

 **Moonlight Panther Dancer:** _ **(2800 ATK/2) = 1400 ATK**_ **/ 2500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ Beast-Warrior/ Fusion/ Effect**

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal**

" _Because of Panther Dancer's effect, she can attack all my monster's twice each, and they can't be destroyed the first time."_ Mayu whispered to herself, looking at the image of Panther Dancer's card. " _I have five monsters, but right now the only monsters weaker than it are my Tokens, who are all in defense position. She couldn't possibly be thinking of going after Crimson or Viola? Surely she's smart enough to-"_

"Battle! Panther Dancer attacks Crimson the Burning Venom!" Serena ordered, much to the confusion of just about everyone. Obeying the command, the Fusion monster pounced at Crimson, claws ready to shred her foes into nothing.

"What are you doing?!" Yuri, who was the most surprised of all, exclaimed. "Did you forget about everything? The field spell, the trap? This is a suicide move!"

"I know, which is why you gotta help me," is all Serena said as she began to search for Action cards.

"What have I gotten myself into?" he muttered.

Snagging a card off a platform, Serena took one glance and smiled. It was just what she needed.

"Action Magic, Inner Fury! Panther Dancer gains 600 ATK and can't be destroyed by battle this turn, and she has to attack all monsters my opponent controls!" Not that the last part mattered anyway, that's what Serena was planning on doing.

 **Moonlight Panther Dancer: 1400 ATK - 2000 ATK**

Preparing for the worst, Mayu cartwheeled from platform to platform in search of Action Cards and saw one not too far from her.

"Don't even bother!" Serena called out just as her opponent grabbed the card. "Since I used Pink Flamingo to summon Panther Dancer, you can't activate Spell or Traps when she battles."

Clicking her tongue, Mayu frowned knowing that she couldn't use the card she found. "But that doesn't stop me from using the effects of already activated cards, so that means I can use Defense Mechanism to double Crimson's ATK!"

 **Serpendine – Crimson the Burning Venom: 1800 ATK – 3600 ATK**

Sword becoming ablaze once more, Crimson prepared to strike back. She jumped up as she prepared to deal the finishing blow against Serena.

"This is bad!" Yuya cried out, "If this goes through Serena will lose!"

"She's gonna need one hell of a miracle to keep her in the game!" Yugo added.

"Well it's no Miracle... but I think this'll work just fine," said Yuri as he played an Action Card. "Action Magic, Bi-Attack! Now Panther Dancer's ATK is doubled!"

 **Moonlight Panther Dance: 2000 ATK – 4000 ATK**

Now filled with more power than ever, Panther Dancer swiped her claws at Crimson, forcing the snake woman to the ground as the shock waves hit Mayu.

 **Mayu LP: 6700 - 6300**

"Attack Crimson again!" Serena bellowed, and Panther Dancer kneed the opposing monster in the face. Crimson wasn't destroyed, the effect of Defense Mechanism saving it from being destroyed, though the force from the attack was still more than enough to leave a bruise on her red skin. And since she wasn't destroyed, Panther Dancer didn't gain any ATK from her additional effect.

 **Mayu LP: 6300 - 5900**

"Next, Panther Dancer attacks each of your Tokens!" Continuing on the momentum, the feline warrior slashed each snake, leaving a trio of claw marks on each one. Since they were all in defense position and the Action Card required Panther Dancer to attack all monsters only once each, there was no point in attacking twice.

"And then I attack Viola twice with Panther Dancer!"

Turning her attention towards the crazy snake lady, Panther Dancer sharpened her claws before trading blows with the purple Serpendine's scythes. Despite her best efforts, Viola was no match for the stronger monster, as shown by the new sets of scars that appeared on her body.

 **Mayu LP: 5900 - 4200 - 2500**

Breathing heavily, Mayu looked down at her opponent. "But now you don't have any more monsters to attack with! You have to end your turn."

"I wonder about that," Serena replied smugly. "I activate the effect of Moonlight Fusion! Once per turn, if a Moonlight monster inflicted battle damage, I can activate this card from the graveyard and perform another Fusion Summon! I fuse Panther Dancer on the field with Moonlight Black Sheep and Moonlight Yellow Cheetah in my hand!"

As the Fusion Portal reappeared in the background, Panther Dancer was joined by the two other monsters. Black Sheep was, as the name implied, a sheep woman in a fancy black butler suit with a crescent mask covering the right side of her face. Yellow Cheetah was a humanoid cat similar to Blue Cat, physically identical except for the colors. The sections that were once blue were instead yellow, with many black spots adorning her outfit, including at the tip of her tail. Under her eyes were black tear marks, just like that of a cheetah. The trio began to merge in a spiral of red, black and yellow as Serena chanted.

"Supple beast that dances though moonlit fields! The beast lurking in pitch-black darkness! Yellow hunter running across the land! Swarm in a vortex of the moon's gravity and revive with a new power! Yuugo Shoukan! Come to me! The king of beasts dancing atop the summit of the moonlit wilderness! Moonlight Leo Dancer!"

Enveloped by the light of the full moon, Serena's strongest monster, a humanoid lion with flared-up gray hair, a crescent moon accessory on the side of her face and an outfit that was even more revealing than Panther Dancer's danced onto the field. Wielding a sword nearly twice her size, the powerful dancer gazed down at the humanoid snakes, unimpressed by their presence.

 **Moonlight Leo Dancer/** _ **3500 ATK**_ **/ 3000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 10/ Beast-Warrior/ Fusion/ Effect**

"Leo Dancer is unaffected by my opponent's card effects, so your little Field Spell won't be able to cut her ATK in half! And since I used Yellow Cheetah as Fusion Material, I can add Moon Light Perfume from my deck to my hand."

After staying silent for so long, Biograph Magician spoke, locking gaze with Leo Dancer. _"Well, it seems as though you've gotten stronger Dancer. After all these years I had thought that you and your sisters were unable to regain the powers you had lost when Ray split the dimensions the first time."_

" _Things can change over the course of twenty five years,"_ Leo Dancer snarled back. _"Motzarta, Bell, Nightingale and I do not have the same powers we had back then, but right now I am more than powerful enough to defeat any who opposes Serena."_

" _Funny, because if I recall correctly it was you who lost to Clear Wing right after he evolved. Not that it matters, of course, you were always meant for fighting other Fusions."_

" _Get to the point!"_ Leo Dancer roared. _"Why show yourself now?! Ray hid you in case Zarc ever wanted to gather the Three Magicians together, and only now you come back."_

" _Let's just say I had a very unfortunate state of affairs that I wasn't able to get out of, child of the moon."_

While the two monsters argued, the eight counterparts seemed to sense something was wrong with Leo Dancer. There was an air of aggression around her, a hint of rage shimmering deep in her eyes. Serena was the first to notice.

" _Why is Leo Dancer acting this way? Is it because of something in my opponent's deck?"_ She wondered before shooing away the thought, deciding to focus on the duel at hand. "Battle! Leo Dancer attacks Viola!"

Viola raised up one of her scythes as Leo Dancer held her sword up into the moonlight. The blade became surrounded in a veil of mystical energy as Leo Dancer slammed it to the ground, a wave of light dashing right towards the snake. Viola tried to block it with her weapon, only to be thrown against the wall as the attack broke through her pitiful defense.

With swift reflexes, Mayu played the Action card she had grabbed earlier. "Action Magic, Damage Vanish! The damage from this battle becomes 0, and Defense Mechanism keeps Viola from being destroyed!"

"If that card wasn't in the way, Serena would have gotten rid of all those Serpendine monsters by now," Kurosaki stated. "And now she has nothing else she can do."

"Don't you guys know anything," Yugo said, earning the attention from the others. "Leo Dancer can attack twice per turn, and after it attacks the first time, all monsters that the opponent controls are destroyed."

Mayu, who overheard the conversation, gasped. Defense Mechanism could only protect her monsters from being destroyed by battle. As Leo Dancer thrusted her sword into the shaft of light, the rays of the moon reflecting against the blade and aiming at each of her monsters, the girl front wheeled from platform to platform as she searched an for an Action Card.

Just before the rays reached her monsters, luck seemed to be on Mayu's side. "Action Magic, Muteki! Until the end of this turn, one monster I control cannot be destroyed by battle or card effect! I choose Crimson!"

The red snake's skin turned into a shimmering gold as the light eradicated her serpentine sisters. She glared daggers back at Leo Dancer, who was more than ready to return them.

"Well then, Leo Dancer attacks Crimson!" Serena ordered as she grabbed another Action card. "And then I activate Extreme Sword, giving Leo Dancer an additional 1000 ATK until the end of the turn!"

 **Moonlight Leo Dancer: 3500 ATK - 4500 ATK**

Sword increasing in sized, Leo Dancer dashed towards Crimson with such swiftness that she had no time to even raise her own sword. Crimson fell to the ground like a sack of potatoes with one swipe.

 **Mayu LP: 2500 - 1600**

 **Moonlight Leo Dancer: 4500 ATK - 3500 ATK**

"Turn end."

"Because of Muteki, Crimson isn't destroyed by Defense Mechanism, and that means she keeps the ATK boost." Mayu declared as her monster got back up on her tail.

"Well I guess it's back to me," Yuri remarked, stepping forward. "Boku no turn. Draw!"

"Since I don't have enough life points, Predator Planter is destroyed," he began as the card disappeared from his field. He felt a little disappointed that he couldn't get any more use of it, but he didn't say anything, considering that Serena probably went through the same thing with Cat Dancer.

"During my Standby Phase, I use the effect of Predator Plant Cordyceps in my graveyard. By banishing it I can Special Summon two Level four or lower Predator Plants from my graveyard! Come, Ophrys Scorpio, Darling Cobra!"

An angry little head attached to a shriveled up plant popped out of Yuri's graveyard, before splitting apart into the two monsters that Yuri had used before.

 **Predator Plant Ophrys Scorpio:** _ **(1200 ATK/2) = 600 ATK**_ **/ 800 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Plant/ Effect**

 **Predator Plant Darling Cobra:** _ **(1000 ATK**_ ** _/2) = 500 ATK_ / 1500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Plant/ Effect**

"But you summoned monsters, therefore Palace summons another Token!" Mayu reminded as yet another snake appeared on her field.

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal**

"Darling Cobra's effect, allowing me to search the classic Fusion."

"It's not Fusion, its Yugo!" The banana head exclaimed, much to everyone's displeasure.

"SHUT UP YUGO!" Everyone of Yugo's friends shouted, causing the Synchro boy to fall on his back.

"You know, you don't have to do that every time someone says Fusion," Rin sighed, rubbing her temples.

"Sorry, force of habit."

"Ophrys Scorpio's effect activates when summoned," Yuri continued, deciding to ignore Yugo's simple mindedness. "I send Sundew Kingii from my hand to the graveyard and Special Summon Predator Plant Stapelia Worm from my deck!"

A purple worm monster with the head of a carrion flower and green ruff around its neck squirmed onto the field, a putrid odor accompanying it.

 **Predator Plant Stapelia Worm: (100/2) = 50 ATK/** _ **2000 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 4/ Plant/ Effect**

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal**

"And then…" Yuri slowly started before slamming a card on his Duel Disk. "Magic Card, Yuugo hatsudo! I fuse together Darling Cobra and Squid Drosera!"

Darling Cobra and Squid Drosera rose into the air and approached the fusion portal. Swirling together in a spiral of red and blue, the two monsters merged together as Yuri began his summoning chant.

"Two beautiful flowers with an insect-alluring fragrance! Now become one and give the cry of the predator! Yuugo Shoukan! Come forth, Level 5! Carnivorous beast that paralyzes its prey! Predator Plant Arum Basilisk!"

Flapping its strong wings, a green and purple plant monster with a wyvern's body covered with small berries and a rooster's head surrounded by a broad, black leafy spathe flew onto the field, cawing loudly.

 **Predator Plant Arum Basilisk:** _ **(2300 ATK/2) = 1150 ATK**_ **/ 1800 DEF/ DARK/ Level 5/ Plant/ Fusion/ Effect**

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal**

"Arum Basilisk and Squid Drosera no kouka! When Arum Basilisk is Fusion Summoned, all monsters my opponent controls gain a Predator Counter! And since Squid Drosera left the field, every Special Summoned monster my opponent controls will gain a Predator Counter as well!"

 **Moonlight Leo Dancer: Level 10 – Level 1 (2 Predator Counters)**

 **Serpendine – Crimson the Burning Venom: Level 4 – Level 1 (2 Predator Counters)**

 **Serpendine Token X3: Level 3 – Level 1 (2 Predator Counters each)**

"In addition," Yuri smiled, "as long as Arum Basilisk is on the field, any monster with a Predator Counter has its ATK and DEF changed to zero!"

"And since Leo Dancer is unaffected by the opponent's card effects, her ATK doesn't change!" Yuya exclaimed cheerfully, knowing Serena's monster was safe from the draining effect.

Arum Basilisk flapped its wings until it was hovering twenty feet in the air. Looking down at the field, it gave out a loud cry that turned almost every monster with a Predator Counter into a plant, Leo Dancer being the exception.

 **Serpendine – Crimson the Burning Venom: 1800 ATK - 0 ATK/ 300 DEF - 0 DEF**

 **Serpendine Token X3: 800 ATK - 0 ATK**

"And then, I activate my trap, Predator Plant Reborn!" Yuri declared, stretching his hand towards the card he had set during his last turn. "I Special Summon a Predator Plant monster from my graveyard! Come back, Utricularia Kraken!"

Materializing from a graveyard portal, the tentacled plant monster screeched as its arms flailed about, ATK simultaneously raised than decreased because of Serpendine Palace.

 **Predator Plant Utricularia Kraken:** _ **((1700+2000)/2) = 1850 ATK**_ **/ 2400 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ Plant/ Fusion/ Effect**

 **(Insert Serpendine Token Stats here)**

"Now with my monster's effect, I tribute one of those Tokens and draw a card. And since a monster with a Predator Counter left the field, the effect of Predator Planet lets me add a Predator card from my deck to my hand. I add the equip Spell, Predator Graft!"

One of the (now plant) snakes disappeared, and Yuri's hand grew by two.

"I send Predator Plant Lillyzard from my deck the graveyard to activate the effect of Seed Canon Salvo! You take 300 points of damage and all your monsters lose 600 ATK! Of course, that's only one monster, but beggars can't be choosers."

The seed turret reappeared before firing at the sole Token without a counter, and then at Mayu.

 **Mayu LP: 1600 – 1300**

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK – 200 ATK**

Idly looking at his hand, Yuri plucked a card and played it. "I activate the Equip Spell, Predator Graft! I Special Summon the Sundew Kingii sleeping in my graveyard and equip it with this card!"

Climbing down from one of the walls was a plant creature that resembled a frilled-lizard, with six red eyes and multiple drops of shimmering red liquid covering its body, tongue hanging out.

 **Predator Plant Sundew Kingii:** _ **(600/2) = 300 ATK**_ **/ 200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 2/ Plant/ Effect**

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Effect**

"Sundew Kingii no kouka!" Yuri exalted, the drops on his monster glowing a faint light. "Once per turn, I can perform a Fusion Summon using it as well as monsters I control, in my hand," he paused, "Or monsters my opponent controls with Predator Counters!"

Mayu nearly dropped her hand in shock as Sundew Kingii whipped the ground with its tongue, opening up a fusion portal that seemed to draw the remaining two Tokens with Predator Counters into it.

"It's just like Super Polymerization," Yugo muttered, reminiscing of how Yuri used the card in their duel and evolved his dragon. At the very least this effect could only be used during Yuri's turn.

"I fuse together Sundew Kingii, Ophrys Scorpio, Arum Basilisk, Utricularia Kraken and the two Serpendine Tokens with Predator Counters!" Yuri declared, voice echoing as the six monsters began melding together in a spiral of red, blue, yellow, green, black and white.

"Two beautiful flowers with an insect-alluring fragrance! Lurking predator that drags prey into the darkness! Carnivorous beast that paralyzes its prey! Twin serpents serving under their masters! Now become one, and awaken the terrifying hell from beneath! Yuugo Shoukan! Appear, ancient predator hunting until the destruction of the world! Level 9, Predator Plant Leviamphora!"

Bursting from the portal was a gigantic, plant serpent with a large, fanged, pitcher plant mouth that dripped a toxic fluid that dissolved through the floor. Trailing off its body were multiple pitcher plant and fly trap tipped tentacles that secreted rivers of saliva and snapped at anything nearby, including themselves. A loud, terrifying roar escaped from the largest mouth as it landed on and broke the floor of the building.

 **Predator Plant Leviamphora/** _ **? ATK**_ **/ 3000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 9/ Plant/ Fusion/ Effect**

 **Serpendine Token: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Effect**

"That thing is eerie," Ruri whispered as she hid behind Yuto, Yuzu doing the same thing with Yuya.

"And suddenly I'm glad I never had to duel him." Rin added softly.

"Since Arum Basilisk left the field, Crimson's ATK returns to normal."

 **Serpendine – Crimson the Burning Venom: 0 ATK – 1800 ATK/ 0 DEF – 300 DEF**

"Leviamphora's original ATK is equal to the number of materials used in its Fusion Summon times 500, plus an additional 1000 for each Fusion Monster!" Yuri said as his monster began glowing.

"There were six monsters used as fusion material." Yugo said as he hastily started counted on his fingers. "So that's 3000….."

"And there were two Fusion Monsters, an additional 2000." Yuto added.

"A total of 5000 ATK!" Yuya gasped.

"But, Serpendine Palace halves that ATK," Kurosaki reminded as the glow around Leviamphora faded.

 **Predator Plant Leviamphora: ((500 X 6) + (1000 X 2))/2 = 2500 ATK**

"Damn it!" Yugo roared, "As long as that stupid Field Spell is active, nothing Yuri or Serena pull out will be strong enough to get rid of her monsters.

"And every time they summon anything, Serpendine Palace will summon another Token." Added Yuzu, watching the duel with concern.

"Plus there's the trap that's keeping her monsters from being destroyed," Yuya chimed in.

"Oh ye of so little faith, I'm just getting started." Yuri said before continuing his turn. "Leviamphora's effect! By destroying one Spell or Trap I control, I can give all my opponent's monsters a Predator Counter! I destroy Seed Canon Salvo!"

Yuri's spell began to crack, glowing an eerie pink. "When Seed Canon Salvo is destroyed, I destroy cards my opponent controls, up to the number of Predator Plants I control. Since I control two, I destroy Serpendine Palace and Serpendine Defense Mechanism!"

Seed Canon Salvo exploded in a burst of light, forcing everyone to shield their eyes. All around them, the walls of the palace began to crumble, pieces of debris falling down. Leo Dancer even had to swipe a few away with her sword. When the light died down, everyone was now standing in the middle of the outside field, both of Mayu's cards gone.

"Since that pesky field card is gone, the ATK of my monsters returns to normal."

 **Predator Plant Leviamphora: 2500 ATK – 5000 ATK**

 **Predator Plant Stapelia Worm: 50 ATK – 100 ATK**

"Palace has another effect!" Mayu revealed as her Tokens began shedding their skins. "When it's destroyed, I can destroy all Serpendine Tokens I control and summon up to that many Serpendine monsters from my graveyard! Shed your skins and obtain a new power!" She bellowed as her monster's disappeared, only no new monsters took their place.

"Surprised?" Yuri mockingly asked. "As long as Leviamphora is on the field, you can't Special Summon any monster with ATK lower than its own ATK. And since nothing in your Graveyard has more than five thousand ATK, no monsters are summoned."

"SHEESH! That card is powerful!" Yugo cried out, beginning to understand the real reason why Leo Akaba had confiscated most of Yuri's Extra Deck.

"And now, Crimson and Leo Dancer gets another Predator Counter." Yuri added nonchalantly.

 **Serpendine – Crimson the Burning Venom: 3 Predator Counters**

 **Moonlight Leo Dancer: 3 Predator Counters**

"Battle, Predator Plant Leviamphora attacks Crimson the Burning Venom!" Yuri ordered, his monster leaping towards Crimson.

Rushing forward, Mayu dashed around the field to find an Action Card, Serena doing the same thing.

Serena found one first; a copy of Crush Action, which she immediately began to play.

"Action Ma-" She began, before Mayu beat her to the punch.

"Action Magic, Damage Vanish! Battle damage becomes zero!"

Snarling, Serena threw down the card anyway. "Action Magic, Crush Action! All Action Cards added to our hands are destroyed this turn!"

Since Damage Vanish was activated first, the effects of Crush Action didn't affect it. Crimson held up her sword as the massive plant beast dived down, mouth open and ready to swallow her. Not wanting to go down without a fight, she leaped up and roared a fierce battle cry, closing the distance between the two of them. The force of impact blew up a massive burst of wind and dust, ripping up blades of grass and nearly blowing everyone away. Though they had all managed to stand their ground, Mayu's cloak and hood were blown off…

"Well that could have worked out better," Yuri quipped as the dust began settling, knowing it wasn't over.

However, the smoke died down, revealing both the shape of Mayu and Crimson, still on the field. Without the hood, the moon could now shine on her platinum blonde, almost white, hair, while two silver side tails framed her face. Her silver eyes pierced the night like the light of the full moon. Despite being so out of breath, she still managed to hold an air of danger and mystery.

The 'mystery' part coming from the fact she was another girl who looked like Yuzu and the others!

The spectators gasped, stunned at another person with the face of the girls.

"What…" Yuri muttered.

"… _the…"_ Leo Dancer exclaimed.

"F%^&!" Serena shouted, eyes as wide as a set of saucer plates.

"I banish Serpendine Multiplication from my Graveyard to protect Crimson from being destroyed, and because of Damage Vanish my Life Points are safe," Mayu moaned as she stood up. "Now, you've done everything you can, end your turn!"

Yuri, who had been just staring at her, shook his head.

"Turn end." He said, still pondering exactly what was going on.

"There's another one…" Yuzu whispered, stunned by the appearance of another girl.

"B-bu-but how!" Yugo stuttered, mind unable to comprehend the situation.

"I don't know. Akaba Leo never said anything about there being a fifth reincarnation of Ray." Yuto stated. "The dimensions were only split into four, so how can there be more than four girls?"

"Maybe she's Ray reincarnated after what happened with Zarc two years ago," Ruri suggested. "Maybe Ray was reborn in this Dark Dimension as her."

"No." Rin shot down, "If that were true, she'd be far younger than she is now."

"Whatever's going on, she has to know why these people were coming after us." Yuya thought aloud.

"Watashi no turn!" Scanning her hand quickly, Mayu took one of the cards and slammed it down, eager to end the duel. "I activate the Continuous Spell, Serpendine Shrine!"

An altar decorated in pure gold and covered with offerings, such as food, jewelry and weapons, materialized behind Mayu.

"As long as this card is on the field, I can tribute Serpendine monsters from my hand or Deck when I activate their effects. I tribute Azula the Poisonous Arrow from my Deck and activate Crimson's effect! Leviamphora is destroyed and you-"

Yuri cut her off. "Let me stop you right there. Since you activated the effect of a monster with a Predator Counter on it, I can activate Leviamphora's other effect! Crimson's effect is negated and is turned into an equip card for Leviamphora!"

Just as Crimson's sword began to set itself on fire, one of Leviamphora's fanged tentacles shot forward and clasped her in its jaws. The red snake tried in vain to escape, only to be squeezed tighter in the carnivorous maw.

"And thanks to Predator Planet's effect, I add another Predator Graft from my deck to my hand." Yuri smirked.

Mayu clenched her fist. Looking at what she had in her hand and what she controlled, she knew there was only one other option….

"Serpendine Shrine has another effect. I can use it as a Tribute to Tribute Summon a Serpendine monster! I tribute my Serpendine Shrine and summon Serpendine – Ebanee the Swift Scout!"

The golden altar vanished, and in its place was a snake woman with dark gray skin and a black tail twice her size. Her eyes were a rich mocha, and her black hair laid flush against her back. Covering her head was a black mamba headdress, and covering her chest was a black bikini top. She carried a thin metal boomerang, ends dripping black liquid.

 **Serpendine – Ebanee the Swift Scout/** _ **2000 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 5/ Reptile/ Effect**

"In response to the summon of your monster," Yuri exulted, "I activate Leviamphora's effect! I destroy the Crimson equipped to it in order to give all your monsters a Predator Counter!"

The mouth holding Crimson squeezed her to death, spreading her essence in the form of dust that formed a green mouth around Ebanee's shoulder.

 **Serpendine – Ebanee the Swift Scout: Level 5 – Level 1**

 **Moonlight Leo Dancer: 4 Predator Counters**

"And since Leviamphora's other effect isn't once per turn, if you try and attack with Ebanee or use her effects, she'll be turned into an equip card for Leviamphora."

Mayu didn't respond, she was too focused on her deck. Or rather, the dark power she could sense flowing from one card. She felt it calling for her, demanding for her to use it.

" _I know what you are thinking,"_ Biograph Magician warned, fear staining her voice. _"You can't-"_

" _I have to! It's the only way to keep the dragons out of Cronus's hands!"_ Mayu mentally yelled back. "By banishing Serpendine Shrine from my Graveyard, I can add…" she paused, feeling the dark aura of the card as it slid out from her deck. "I add the Spell, Yami no Kakubunretsu, to my hand!"

"Yami no…" Yuri whispered.

"…Kakubunretsu!" Serena exclaimed.

"And then activate it!" Mayu yelled, slamming the card on her duel disk. A wave of darkness swept across the field, with such force that it nearly knocked everyone over. A holographic image of the card appeared next to Mayu, depicting the dragon and demon from the card Fusion being forcefully ripped apart as an atom in the center of the picture spilt in a burst of nuclear energy.

"When Yami no Kakubunretsu is activated," Mayu explained, her voice a dull and ominous monotone. "All cards my opponent controls have their effects negated."

Leviamphora roared in pain as the darkness began to cover its body, weakening it. Stapelia Worm screeched and wiggled, trying to escape from the dark card's hold on it. Only Leo Dancer was safe, and even then she felt herself being pressured by the card's power.

"Since Leviamphora's effects have been negated," she continued, sending Ebanee's card from her field to the Graveyard, her six other monsters popping out from the slot on her Duel Disk. "There is nothing stopping me from summoning this. Using Ebanee the Swift Scout as the Base Material and subtracting Coatlicue the Clutch Mother, Viola the Berserk Reaper, Ivy the Silent Mimic, Crimson the Burning Venom, Amber the Rookie Soldier and Azula the Poisonous Arrow as the other Materials, I perform a Dark Fission Summon!"

"Dark Fission!" Everyone cried out, stunned as Mayu took her six monsters and shuffled them face up into her deck, the card for Azula appearing on top.

Moaning ominously, Ebanee slowly turned grey and colorless before melting into a sphere of semi-transparent liquid, a gigantic multi-colored nucleus pulsating in the center. One by one, the ghostly forms of each of Mayu's other monsters materialized next to the sphere. Descending into the mass of liquid, each monster transformed into a pair of neutrons that jammed themselves into the nucleus, increasing both the mass and instability of the compound.

"Venomous serpents who serve the highest order, shed your skins and merge together as the monster who can turn all things locked within her gaze to stone." Mayu chanted softly as the Extra Deck in her duel disk opened up. Reaching her hand into the pocket, she revealed a multi-colored card that glimmered with colorful lights as if it was made of foil. Holding it up to the sky, she cried, "Dark Fission! Materialize here and now! Serpendine – Medusa the Snake Queen!" and placed the card onto the blade of her disk.

Just as she did, the final pair of neutrons embedded themselves into the nucleus of the atom, before it and the sphere burst in a multi-colored nuclear explosion, scattering drops of the liquid throughout the battlefield and throwing everyone back with great force.

That's when things got _weird_.

Yuri, who was bracing himself for the impact with the ground, found himself stopping. Looking around with a stunned look on his face, he saw that the droplets of liquid had suddenly halted in mid-air, everyone else frozen in shock as if time had stopped again. Then, without warning, everyone was pulled back onto their feet as the drops of liquid suddenly were pulled towards the multi-colored mushroom cloud, clustering together into a form that vaguely resembled another snake woman.

"This is..." Yuri muttered, unable to believe what he was seeing.

As the final drops of liquid attached themselves to the forming monster, a burst of rainbow light billowed from the center of its chest. Slowly gaining color, a majestic and beautiful woman with pale skin, as well as a green and yellow snake tail slithered forward. Covering her chest was a white bikini top that left her midriff bare. On each hand were five bronze rings embedded with a different colored gem; red, blue, yellow, green and black on the right, and orange, gold, silver, pink and purple on the left. Wrapped around her eyes was a crimson blindfold decorated with white patterns that resembled snakes. In the center of her forehead was a bronze circlet with a pearly white stone held by a snake biting its own tail. But her most noticeable feature was the multitude of green snakes atop her head, hissing and staring in all directions with their slit pupils. A sinister laughter escaped from the woman's lips, madness and cruelty running through her veins.

"…the corrupted Fusion…" Serena whispered.

 **Serpendine – Medusa the Snake Queen:** _ **2600 ATK**_ **/ 1600 DEF/ DARK/ Level -7/ Reptile/ Dark Fission/ Effect**

….

Meanwhile, at LDS, employees were scattering about as the Summoning Energy Detectors reacted like it was the end of the world. Depicting gray bars next to the one marked 'Fusion,' the charts could only display one word;

Fission

….

"Fission, the process of splitting a nucleus into many smaller nuclei." Yuto explained, eyes gazing at Medusa. "The opposite of fusion."

"I never would have imagined that the Dark version of Fusion would be something like this," Rin said as she mysteriously broke out in a cold sweat, Yuzu and Ruri doing the same.

Panting harshly, Mayu felt herself becoming overpowered by the energy of her card. Barely managing to stay on her feet, she looked over to see the other girls feeling the same pressure.

"Yuzu!" Yuya cried out, concerned for her. He draped his arm around her shoulder in an attempt to help her, Yugo, Yuto and Kurosaki doing the same with Rin and Ruri.

Unable to stand by and just watch the girls suffer, Biograph Magician knew she had to intervene. Extending her arm towards the sky, she bellowed, "Darkness of ruin attempting to overshadow the light of life, be gone!"

The bracelets on her arms shined brightly as her outline appeared before the duelists. Attention turning towards the strange light, the eight counterparts saw the same shape that appeared right before they were separated. Strength returning to them, the girls found themselves able to stand again as the silhouette faded from view.

"That light…" Yuya stuttered.

"There's no mistaking it. She's the one who separated us," Yuto stated, "And she has Biograph Magician."

"But how?" Asked Kurosaki, "Akaba Leo said that he had no idea about where the other two Magicians disappeared too."

"No, he said that he hadn't heard about them until Zarc merged with his dragons when he ravaged the Original Dimension," Rin reminded. "But that still doesn't answer the question of how she got the card in the first place."

While they discussed how Mayu could have obtained the powerful card, said Magician was talking to Mayu.

"Thank you," the girl said out of breath.

" _It was my duty. I know how you feel about me, but I am only doing what I can to protect life. Despite my better judgement, we need to do whatever we can to end this."_ The magician solemnly replied. " _Now, win this duel, so that we may stop Cronus._ "

"Understood. Now that Yami no Kakubunretsu's effect has resolved, all your card effects return. And then, Medusa no kouka! For every Material used in her Dark Fission Summon, she gains 500 ATK for the turn!"

"Medusa was summoned using seven monsters so that means, 3500 ATK!" Gasped Yuzu.

"And with Medusa's 2600 ATK, that means she's going to be stronger than both Yuri and Serena's monsters!" Ruri added.

"Not if I can help it!" Yuri cried out, wanting to stop Medusa's ATK from skyrocketing. "When a card or effect is activated that would change the ATK of at least one monster is activated, Stapelia Worm can negate the effect and destroy that card!"

"At this time, I activate Medusa's other effect," Mayu countered as Coatlicue slid out from her deck. "During either of our turns, I can send one face-up Serpendine from my Deck to the Graveyard in order to negate the effects of all monsters my opponent controls and halve their ATK! Ekay, Petra-gaze!"

As Mayu sent Coatlicue to the Graveyard, the eyes of both Medusa and her snakes started glowing a bright sky blue, before firing off beams of the same colored light in all directions. Yuri, Serena and their friends found themselves rapidly trying to avoid each beam as they hit the ground, turning whatever they hit into stone. And while Leo Dancer was able to dodge the beams or deflect them with her sword, both of Yuri's monsters weren't so lucky. They were struck by the petrifying glare, final screams frozen mid-way as they transformed into granite statues.

 **Predator Plant Stapelia Worm: 100 ATK – 50 ATK (Effects Negated)**

 **Predator Plant Leviamphora: 5000 ATK – 0 ATK (Effects Negated)**

 **Moonlight Leo Dancer unaffected**

"Since Coatlicue was sent to the Graveyard, her effect Special Summons a Serpendine Token for each monster my opponent controls," Mayu explained as three snakes popped up on her field, hissing venomously. "And with Stapelia Worm's effect negated, Medusa gains 3500 ATK!"

 **Serpendine Token X3:** _ **800 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal**

 **Serpendine – Medusa the Snake Queen: 2600 ATK – 6100 ATK**

"This is bad!" Yugo exclaimed, "If she attacks than both Yuri and Serena are finished!"

"From my graveyard, I activate the effect of Coatlicue!" Mayu said, surprising her opponents, who were expecting her to attack. "By tributing one of my Serpendine Tokens, I Special Summon Coatlicue!"

 **Serpendine – Coatlicue the Clutch Mother: 0 ATK/** _ **2900 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 8/ Reptile/ Effect**

"And then I use Coatlicue's effect! I gain 500 Life Points for every Serpendine Token I control. I control two Tokens, therefore I gain one thousand life points!" She declared as she became enveloped in a healing glow.

 **Mayu LP: 1300 – 2300**

Serena eyed her opponent suspiciously. "If you think you're going to finish us off this turn, why bother strengthening your defenses?"

"Because if there's anything this duel has taught me, it's to always have a back-up plan." Mayu replied, before pointing towards Coatlicue. "As long as Coatlicue is on my field, all Serpendine Tokens I control are safe from attacks and from card effects. And due to the effects of Viola and Ebanee, Medusa can't be targeted either, nor can she be destroyed by battle."

"Does it really matter," Yuri asked dryly. "You're gonna try and finish us off right now."

"Good point. Battle! I attack Leviamphora with one of my Tokens!"

One of the Tokens leapt at the petrified plant as Yuri began jumping across the platforms to find an Action Card. Snagging one, he was disappointed to see the card wouldn't do anything to save him. Just as he was about to activate the card just to get rid of it, a familiar voice rang out.

"I activate the effect of Moonlight Grey Moth in my hand!"

All eyes turned to Serena, seeing her dive off a platform. "During the Battle Phase, I can Special Summon Grey Moth from my hand. Come, Grey Moth!"

Flying down with a pair of furry grey wings, Serena's moth came between the battling monsters. She was a petit loli, wearing a furry grey suit with a moth mask that had a crescent moon on her forehead, and white antennae sticking out from in between the locks of her short, unruly, white hair. Tied to her back was a long pole, with a lantern affixed to the end that she was seemingly mesmerized by.

 **Moonlight Grey Moth: 200 ATK/** _ **400 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 1/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

"When Grey Moth is summoned by her effect, I can make it so only one Moonlight monster I control can be attacked this turn! I choose Leo Dancer!" Serena declared as Grey Moth vanished behind her Fusion Monster, leaving behind only her lantern. Shining a hypnotic light, the lantern attracted the attention of the attacking Token, distracting it from Yuri's Leviamphora.

"With this, you can't attack either of Yuri's monsters!" The Fusion girl yelled protectively.

"Serena…" Yuri whispered, stunned that Serena would go out of her way to protect him again. However….

"But that means if she attacks with Medusa, Serena will lose!" Yuya realized, the others looking at Serena in shock.

"All right," Mayu said with no emotion. "If you wish to be defeated first, then so be it! I cancel the attack of my Serpendine Token, and then attack Leo Dancer with Medusa the Snake Queen! Serpent Blow!"

Medusa's eyes glowed a dark purple before firing beams of light towards Leo Dancer, who held out her sword in an act of defiance.

"Because of Grey Moth's effect, any monster that battles Leo Dancer this turn has its original ATK cut in half! Meaning I won't lose this duel!" Serena yelled as the glow of the lantern surrounded Medusa, weakening her attack by very little.

 **Serpendine – Medusa the Snake Queen: 6100 – (2600/2) = 4800**

The beams shot right through Leo Dancer, destroying her in a burst of energy as she cried out. Swept up by the force of the explosion, Serena was launched off her feet and sent back first against the energy wall.

 **Serena LP: 1500 - 200**

"SERENA!" her friends cried out.

"That's it, I'm getting in there!" Yugo yelled as he starting pounding his fist against the wall.

"It's not going to work Yugo," Yuzu said, recalling her own experience with the situation. "Believe me, not even a fire tornado will break through that wall."

"Well we can't just sit and watch!" He furiously shot back.

Cradling the partially injured Serena, Yuri asked, "You saved me, again. Why?"

"I told you," Serena chuckled weakly, "You're not going down on my watch."

Looking at Yuri with a soft expression, she continued. "You want to prove you're not the same person you were during the Professor's war, and you can't do that if you lose your first duel back. Besides," she said weakly, "I had some work to catch up on."

"Serena," Yuri whispered as she stood back up and looked at Mayu.

"How do you like that? With one card, I've keep us both in this duel. You better have enjoyed this turn, because it's the last one you're getting!"

Mayu returned the taunt with a shrug. "Your monster's effect may have stopped me from attacking anything other than Leo Dancer, but right now you don't have a chance of defeating me!" She exclaimed before grabbing a nearby Action Card.

"Action Magic, Illusion Guard! All monsters on the field are changed to Defense Position!" She declared as all monsters took a defensive stance, their DEF showing nearby.

"I end my turn. At this time, the effect of Medusa and Grey Moth end and Medusa's ATK returns to normal."

 **Serpendine – Medusa the Snake Queen: 4800 ATK – 2600 ATK**

"Watashi no Turn!" Serena declared as she placed her hand on her deck. Closing her eyes, she began recalling the events of the Academia War, seeing herself unable to do anything as her Lancer comrades fought against those who threatened the peace of the four dimensions.

" _All that time in Academia, I tried to prove myself as a worthy soldier, and as a duelist, when in reality I was just a puppet in Akaba Leo's plan. I haven't been myself since I came back, and now I know why; it's because I haven't let go of everything that's happened. But that changes now. I won't be just a paw in some twisted game, from now on, the only person who will decide my fate, is ME!"_

"DRAW!" Serena exclaimed as she ripped the card off her deck, the gem on her bracelet giving off a faint light.

She turned over the card….

And smiled.

"I summon En Angel – Tsuki!" She exulted, throwing the card down.

Surrounded by the mystical light of the moon, a monster that resembled Serena danced gracefully onto the field. One of her bright gold eyes was covered up by a crescent moon-shaped mask, and her white hair was tied into a ponytail by a silver ribbon, while two blue side tails framed her face. Her outfit was a cyan and light purple leotard with a pale blue skirt. She walked around barefoot, and had a pair of white cat gloves on her hands. Snaking around her right arm was a cyan ribbon, decorated with crescent moon embroidery, and hanging from her neck was a cyan gem in the shape of a stylized 'sigma' symbol, attached to a silver chain. Reflecting the moon's light were a pair of white wings on her back, each having a few feathers being cyan that created the shape of the crescent moon.

 **En Angel – Tsuki:** _ **2100 ATK**_ **/ 1200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

"Tsuki's effect activates when summoned! I can add one En card from my deck to my hand!"

"I won't allow it!" Mayu countered, holding up Ivy's card. "I activate Medusa's effect! Your monsters' effects are negated and their ATK is halved!"

"Action Magic!" Yuri declared, throwing down the card he found during the previous turn. "Refresh! By targeting my Stapelia Worm, Refresh restores its effects! Since Medusa's effect would technically change the ATK of a monster, that effect is negated and your monster is destroyed!"

A spectral image of Stapelia Worm was shot out, clamping its maw around Medusa's face and crushing it as she screamed, slowing turning into dust.

"Alright!" Rin cheered, "Now that Medusa's gone, they can finish her off."

"I wonder about that." Mayu said, confusing everyone.

"When Medusa is destroyed, I can send all face-up Serpendine monsters in my Deck to the Graveyard, and inflict 500 damage for each one! I send Amber the Rookie Soldier, Viola the Berserk Reaper, Azula the Poisonous Arrow and Crimson the Burning Venom to Graveyard!"

"With four monsters, that's 2000 damage!" Ruri shouted.

A massive orb of red, blue, purple and yellow light formed behind Mayu, before launching forward and spiraling towards Yuri and Serena. Quick on his feet, Yuri snagged an Action Card off the edge of a platform that was close by.

"Action Magic, Encore! I reuse the effect of Flame Guard in the graveyard and negate the effect damage!"

Just before the orb hit, a wall of flames covered both duelists, blocking it and causing an explosion of light.

"Yes!" Yuto exclaimed, happy that his friends were still in the duel. "Yuri and Serena still have a chance."

Mayu smirked, seemingly aware of Medusa's silhouette suddenly appearing behind her. "Don't think you've won yet. Medusa can Special Summon herself from the Graveyard during the End Phase of the turn she's destroyed."

"Well even so, you need to be in this duel for that to happen. But with all that said and done," Yuri said playfully, "I believe you were adding a card to your hand Serena."

"Why yes, I was." She replied just as playful. "With the effect of Tsuki, I add En Wreath from my deck to my hand, and then activate it."

Grabbing the card from her deck, Serena proceeded to play it, artwork depicting a lush wreath of vegetation, adorned with flowers and nesting birds. The wreath hovered in a snowy wind that was shining in the light of the moon. At the center of the picture was a combination Fusion, Synchro and Xyz portal.

"Since I control an En monster, I can Fusion Summon a Moonlight monster from my Extra Deck, by banishing the materials from my hand, Field, or Graveyard. Come forth, my monsters!" Serena declared.

The wreath on the card materialized before transforming into the Fusion Portal as the ghostly images of all of the monsters in Serena's Graveyard appeared and gathered around it. Spreading her wings out, the cyan feathers shining brightly, Tsuki placed her hands around the gem on her necklace, resonating a mystical hymn as it pulsed with light.

"I fuse En Angel – Tsuki and Moonlight Grey Moth together with the Blue Cat, Green Peafowl, Yellow Cheetah, Black Sheep, Panther Dancer and Leo Dancer in my Graveyard!"

The light from Tsuki's necklace shined as she and Serena's other monsters clasped their hands together and ascended into the center of the fusion portal, swirling together in a vortex of blue, green, yellow, black, red, purple, grey and cyan. Serena chanted as her monsters began to merge.

"The king of beasts dancing atop the summit of the moonlit wilderness! Supple beast that dances through moonlit fields! Blue cat lurking in the darkness! Exotic bird with green feathers! Yellow hunter running across the land! The beast lurking in pitch-black darkness! Grey insect drawn towards the moon! Bestial angel that dances in the fields under the serene moonlight! Swarm in a vortex of the moon's gravity and revive with a new power!"

"Yuugo Shoukan!" The Fusion girl cried, slamming her hands down as the outline of her monster began to appear within the spiral.

"Come to me! Graceful beast moving under the moon's light! Moonlight Lynx Dancer!"

Coming out of the portal was a monster similar to Cat Dancer, only smaller, and her outfit was red, which closely resembled a jumpsuit rather than a carnival dress. Her dull yellow hair went down to her back, with two tufted 'cat ears' sticking up atop her head. Covering her face was a gold and purple crescent moon mask that pointed down, and clasped in her hands were a pair of simple throwing knives. Posing in front of the moon, Serena's new monster 'meowed' playfully as she made her debut.

 **Moonlight Lynx Dancer:** _ **2000 ATK/**_ **1500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 6/ Beast-Warrior/ Fusion/ Effect**

"Lynx Dancer no kouka! For every card used as Fusion Material in her Fusion Summon, Lynx Dancer gains 200 ATK! I used eight cards as Fusion Material, so Lynx Dancer's ATK increases by 1600 hundred!" Serena explained as her monster was surrounded by a pillar of moonlight. "In addition! Lynx Dancer can attack twice per turn!"

 **Moonlight Lynx Dancer: 2000 ATK + (200 X 8) = 3600**

"With that, Lynx Dancer is the strongest monster on the field!" Ruri cried out in joy.

"But, if Serena doesn't win this turn, then Medusa will come back at the end." Her brother reminded her.

"That won't happen!" Serena declared forcefully." "Battle! Moonlight Lynx Dancer attacks Coatlicue the Clutch Mother!"

Springing forwards, Lynx Dancer began spinning around like a torpedo, knives held forward as she drilled into Coatlicue and destroyed the serpent woman.

"But, since Coatlicue was sent to the Graveyard, I summon a Serpendine Token for each monster my opponent controls! With three monsters, I summon three more Tokens!"

 **Serpendine Token X3: 800 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Normal**

Mayu looked over at Serena's unflinching expression as Lynx Dancer sauntered over beside her. Now that her opponent had destroyed Coatlicue, Mayu had a safe wall of five monsters that would-

Stopping mid thought, Mayu's eyes widened like a balloon, realizing that this is what Serena was aiming for.

"Surprised? You thought I was going to attack twice and give you a free Monster Zone? As if!" The girl said, full of pride in herself.

"I don't get it." Yugo said, failing to comprehend what was happening.

"Because she has all her Monster Zones occupied, she can't summon Medusa during the End Phase." Rin explained, "Serena attacked Coatlicue with Lynx Dancer not just to destroy it, but to trick her opponent into using up all her available Monster Zones!"

"Oh now I get," Yugo snapped his fingers, now understanding what Serena's plan was.

Whipping her head around, Mayu looked behind herself to see the shadow of Medusa slowly fading away as Serena ended her turn.

Grunting, Mayu faced her opponents. "You may have sealed off Medusa's summoning, but I still have the Life Point advantage!"

"You're right about that, which is why I'm leaving it all up to Yuri." Serena agreed, turning her gaze to her partner. "You better not screw this up!"

"Well for you Serena, I would never." The purple haired boy replied as he started to draw his card.

" _How this duel ends is riding on this draw. If it doesn't go well, than we may lose our dragons. All this time I haven't been able to forgive myself for everything I did back then, but now, I've been given the chance to redeem myself, and if I don't win this duel, I can't grasp that chance."_

"Boku no Turn. DRAW!" Yuri shouted as he drew. Turning over the card, he saw that it was a monster…

… with the bottom half being an aqua shade of green.

"I summon Predator Plant Aldrovanda Centipede from my hand!"

Hissing lowly, a red insect-like plant, with dozens of long and thin legs that resembled a water wheel plant crawled onto the field, ready to pounce on anything it could get.

 **Predator Plant Aldrovanda Centipede:** _ **1000 ATK**_ **/ 700 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 1/ Plant/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"So, you use Pendulums now?" Serena asked.

"What, you thought you girls were the only ones with new toys?" Yuri replied, earning a collective hiss from all monsters on the field for calling them 'toys.'

"Calm down, I'm just joking." He explained as he played another card. "I activate another Predator Graft, and with it Special Summon Predator Plant Lillyzard from my Graveyard!"

Coming out of the Graveyard was a green lizard, with red markings for eyes, leaf-like fins for legs, and five long tails tipped with bundles of purple flowers.

 **Predator Plant Lillyzard:** _ **1200 ATK**_ **/ 1200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Plant/ Effect**

"When Lillyzard is Special Summoned from the Graveyard, I can draw one card!" Yuri explained as he did just that. Looking at the card, he found himself…disappointed.

"SON OF A-!" He cursed.

"You bricked!" His friends called out.

Yuri stayed silent before the angered look on his face disappeared, and was replaced with a smile. "No, I'm just messing with you guys."

The side characters face planted, sighing heavily.

"What, just trying to have a little fun. I've had a rough day." Yuri called out, a little offended that his friends didn't get his humor. Regardless of the scene, he continued his turn, starting by playing the card he just drew.

"Magic card, Fusion activate! I fuse together Leviamphora and Aldrovanda Centipede!"

Bursting free from stone as the Fusion Portal once again opened up, Leviamphora and Aldrovanda Centipede swirled together in a spiral of red and blue, their master's chanting accompanying the process.

"Ancient predator hunting until the destruction of the world! Cunning plant reaching for its prey! Now become one and poison this world! Yuugo Shoukan! Appear, Level 8! Toxic dragon that rots away at everything! Predator Plant Dragostapelia!"

Roaring as it exited the portal, a long plant dragon with massive wings, a set of five angular petals encompassing its neck, and a vaguely insect–like face appeared, spreading poisonous spores everywhere it went.

 **Predator Plant Dragostapelia: _2700 ATK_ / 1900 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ Plant/ Fusion/ Effect**

"Aldrovanda Centipede's effects activate! When used as Fusion Material, the summoned monster gains an extra 1000 ATK!"

The deadly plant dragon roared as the spirit of Yuri's Pendulum monster entered its body, power coursing through its veins.

 **Predator Plant Dragostapelia: 2700 ATK – 3700 ATK**

"And then, Aldrovanda Centipede's other effect lets me Special Summon one Predator Plant monster from my Deck! Come to me, Predator Plant Pterapenthes!"

A light shined out from Yuri's deck, and from it came a new monster, a green and yellow pitcher plant with a set leaf-like wings, tipped with four spindly claws each, for arms, and a lengthy tail tipped with a leaf. She screeched as she flapped her wings and hovered in the air.

 **Predator Plant Pterapenthes:** _ **300 ATK**_ **/ 2100 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Plant/ Effect**

"Dragostapelia no kouka! Once during any of our turns, I can place a Predator Counter on one monster my opponent controls, and in addition to that monster becoming Level 1, Dragostapelia negates the activated effects of a monster with Predator Counters on it! I place one on Serena's Lynx Dancer!"

Yuri's plant-dragon hybrid roared as it flapped its wings toward Serena's bestial dancer, releasing spores that formed a little green mouth around the monster's right arm.

 **Moonlight Lynx Dancer: 3600 ATK – 2000 ATK / Level 6 – Level 1**

"Why would Yuri give Serena's monster a counter?" Yuya asked, confused as to why Yuri would make such a move. "Wouldn't it be better to give one to his opponent's monster instead?"

"I activate the effect of Pterapenthes! Once per turn, I can take control of a monster with a Level lower than that of Pterapenthes for the turn!" Yuri exclaimed, sharing a look with Serena that told her exactly what he was doing. "I take control of the now Level 1 Lynx Dancer!"

Lynx Dancer disappeared, before quickly reappearing over on Yuri's field, ready to fillet some snakes.

"Next I change my Stapelia Worm to attack position," he added as his petrified monster transformed back to normal," And then I battle! Stapelia Worm, Lillyzard and Pterapenthes all attack one of your Serpendine Tokens!"

Each of the three monsters leaped into battle, obeying their master's orders. Lillyzard whipped its five tails at one Token, Stapelia Worm jumped at another and grabbed it in its flower like mouth, and Pterapenthes grabbed a third Token in its claws before flinging it to the ground, each snake being destroyed in a burst of light.

"Next, Lynx Dancer attacks the remaining two Tokens!" Yuri ordered as the barrowed monster leaped at his opponent's last two serpents, knives pointing forward.

Desperate to stop her last line of defense from being destroyed, Mayu jumped onto a nearby platform and snatched an Action Card.

"Action Magic, Zero Penalty! Lynx Dancer's ATK is reduced to zero!"

"I activate Stapelia Worm's effect! Your Action Card is negated!"

Mayu snarled as the disgusting little worm crushed the image of her Action Card in its flower-like jaws. She could do nothing more but watch as Lynx Dancer slashed her remaining tokens and turned them into dust.

"Now, let's end this, shall we?" Yuri asked as he stretched out his hand. "Dragostapelia attacks you directly!"

Not waiting for him to finish, Mayu began leaping around for an Action Card that could turn the situation around. Tired of her opponent using the cards against them, Serena started to do the same thing as Yuri's Fusion Monster charged up an orb of purple light inside its mouth.

Both duelists grabbed a card at the same time, Mayu throwing down her first.

"Action Magic, Great Escape! The Battle Phase is ended!"

Time seemed to slow as all eyes turned to Serena, watching and wondering what card it was that she found. Mouth turning into a smile, Serena found that her card had the better effect.

"Action Magic, No Action! Your Action Card is negated!"

Mayu gasped as the image of her card was destroyed. Finding no time to escape, Dragostapelia fired a blast of purple energy directly at the ground in front of her, causing a small explosion that knocked her off her feet, screaming as her Life Points dropped to zero.

 **Mayu LP: 2300 – 0**

 **Yuri and Serena Win**

The others ran towards their friends as the wall of energy disappeared, Yuri and Serena leaping off of the blue platforms as they vanished.

"Hey, remember what I said before about how strange it felt having a body again?" Serena asked.

"Yeah, why?"

"Well forget I ever said anything, it is great to be back!" She joyfully exclaimed, earning a sort-lived chuckle from Yuri. Short-lived in that he was squeezed by Yugo mid-way.

"That was amazing! You totally creamed that creepy chick!" The Synchro duelist shouted happily as he hugged his counterpart, who found the whole thing sort of uncomfortable. Said counterpart was starting to wonder how Rin was able to put up with him all the time in the past.

While the others celebrated Yuri and Serena's victory, Mayu struggled to get back on her feet. Unable to support her upper body, she collapsed back on the floor, just in time to see Yuya claim the cards of the four dragons, which had fallen out of her pocket when the final attack hit. Gritting her teeth, an anger, not at her opponents, but at herself, began flowing through her.

Unaware of this, Yuya walked over to his counterparts, their dragons outstretched in his hands. "I believe these are yours."

"HECK YEAH!" Yugo exclaimed as he took Clear Wing.

"That was close," Yuto said, having been worried for his friends multiple times throughout the duel. "For a minute or two, I thought we'd never see our dragons again."

"Well that didn't happen," Yuzu stated, "And it's all thanks to Yuri and Serena."

As everyone's eyes turned him, Yuri felt a seed of happiness begin to sprout in his chest. Today he had been the hero, not the villain or the monster that had been responsible for so much fear and chaos. Seeing his friends' warm and proud smiles, it was something he hadn't felt in years.

" _Maybe forgiving myself isn't as hard as I'm making it out."_ He thought, a shadow of a smile forming on his lips.

The mood was ruined when a mystical 'whooshing' sound reached the groups ears. They looked over to see Mayu cut open a tear in reality with the strange saw on her duel disk.

"Wait!" Yuya cried out, earning the girl's attention, if only for a second.

"Know this! As long as you have the four dragons, Cronus' servants will came after you. I was trying to help, but you've made your bed." Mayu blasted before stepping through the tear as it closed behind her.

….

With the cryptic warning stuck in their heads, the group called the others and met back at LDS. Between someone who looked like Yuzu and the girls trying to steal the dragons and using the corrupted Fusion, there was much to talk about. They were in Reiji's office, recalling the earlier events. Well, almost all of them.

Yuri groaned, the duel had been a lot more strenuous on his body than he had thought it would be. The surprise pain had forced him to sit outside while the others talked about what happen. Gently placing a hand on his shoulder, he immediately found himself having to pull it back.

"Who would have thought," he said in a low volume. "After all the kinds of injuries I got back then, this duel was what takes it out of me."

"Well frankly that's the least shocking thing I've heard in a while."

Turning his head, Yuri saw Serena beside him, holding out an ice pack. Gratefully taking it from her and placing it over his shoulder, he said, "I suppose that's true."

"Yeah," the Fusion girl said as she sat down next to Yuri. "You, you were pretty great out there. I can see why everyone used to fear you."

"Well what about you," Yuri countered, having been amazed by Serena's actions during the duel. "That bit where you tricked her into filling up her field and saving me, _**twice**_! I may have dealt the winning blow, but only because you set everything up."

Serena gave a small smile, a little bit of her pride swelling.

"You know, you never did answer my question." Yuri brought up, only getting a vague answer before. "Why did you go out of your way to save me?"

Serena sighed, hoping to have said this at a better time and place. "Well," she started slowly, "Let's just say, that you're kinda growing on me. And it felt nice, you know, having someone you can relate to."

"What about-" Yuri started, only to be cut off.

"Yuzu and the others," Serena snorted, "They're nice and all, but they didn't know what it was like to grow up in Academia with Leo Akaba in charge. Sure the war affected all of us, but not in the way it affected me."

" _She has a point_ ," Yuri admitted to himself. Although he had enjoyed being close to the other guys, they didn't quite get how hard it was for him to move on from his past. Even if he did get past everything he did, he'd still have to live with it.

"You know," he said coyly, "We never actually finished our little game of 'Misery Poker.'"

Chuckling, Serena said, "Well let's just call it a draw for now."

"For now, you wanna have a rematch?"

"Yeah, because I don't like losing!"

"Frankly I was thinking something else."

"Oh yeah, like what?"

"Well," he began, "I figured that, instead of trying to go about trying to solve our emotional baggage separately, we tackle that stuff together."

Serena could only blink, unsure of what to say.

"Look, Yuya and the others are great, and yes that includes Yugo, but they can't quite understand me. And you said it yourself, you feel the same with your group of girlfriends. So, I figured, considering how much of a great team we made tonight, we maybe work together sometime in the future."

"Are you asking me out or something?" The blue haired girl asked uncertainly.

"No, NO! I'm not Yugo," Yuri protested, "I don't go around getting all touchy feely with the first woman I see."

"Yeah, Rin really needs to straighten him out."

"My point is," Yuri said as he awkwardly held out his hand, "Do you, maybe, want to, be friends?"

Silence, Serena only looked at Yuri like a second head started to grow from the back of his head. He started to retract the hand…

Only for Serena to grab it began shaking it.

"Friends." She said with a smile.

Yuri smiled back, "Friends."

* * *

*Cards in this chapter*

**Serena**

Moonlight Yellow Cheetah

1200 ATK/ 1700 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect

This card can attack your opponent directly. If this card is sent to the GY as Fusion Material: You can add 1 "Moonlight" or "Moon Light" card from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of "Moonlight Yellow Cheetah" once per turn.

Moonlight Green Peafowl

1400 ATK/ 900 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect

Once per turn: You can discard 1 card; add 1 "Polymerization" or "Fusion" Spell card from your Deck to your hand. If this card is sent to the GY as Fusion Material: You can target 1 "Moonlight" monster in your GY; shuffle it into the Deck, and if you do, you can draw 1 card.

Moonlight Pink Flamingo

0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ DARK/ Level 1/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect

If this card is the only card you control: You can Fusion Summon 1 "Moonlight" Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, by banishing this card and the other Material monster(s) from your GY. A "Moonlight" Fusion Monster summoned using this card as Material gains this effect:

*If this card battles: Your opponent cannot activate Spell/Trap cards until the end of the Damage Step.

Moonlight Grey Moth _(Donjusticia)_

200 ATK/ 400 DEF/ DARK/ Level 1/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect

During the Battle-Phase (Quick Effect): You can Special Summon this card from your hand and target 1 "Moonlight" monster you control; until the end of this turn, your opponent can only target that monster for attacks, and must attack that monster if able. Also, any monster that battles that target has its original ATK and DEF halved until the end of the Damage Step.

En Angel – Tsuki

2100 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect

(This card is always treated as a "Moonlight" card.)

Cannot declare an attack unless you discard a card. If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can add 1 "En" card from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of "En Angel – Tsuki" once per turn. This card can be used as a substitute for any 1 Fusion Material whose name is specifically listed on the Fusion Monster Card, but the other Fusion Material(s) must be correct. A Fusion Monster summoned using this card as Material gains this effect:

*All battle damage this card inflicts to your opponent is doubled.

Moonlight Lynx Dancer

2000 ATK/ 1500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 6/ Beast-Warrior/ Fusion/ Effect

2+ "Moonlight" monsters

Gains ATK equal to the number of Materials used in its Fusion Summon X200. Can attack twice during each Battle Phase. Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can Tribute 1 other "Moonlight" monster you control; all monsters your opponent controls lose 1000 ATK. If this card is destroyed by battle and sent to the GY: You can banish this card and 1 other "Moonlight" monster from your hand or GY; Special Summon 1 "Moonlight" Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck (This Special Summon is treated as a Fusion Summon).

En Wreath _(Donjusticia)_

Normal Spell

Activate only if you control an "En" monster. Activate 1 of the following effects.

*Fusion, Synchro or Xyz Summon 1 "Melodious" monster from your Extra Deck, using 2 monsters you control and/or in your Deck as Material.

*Fusion Summon 1 "Moonlight" Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, by banishing monsters you control, in your hand, and/or in your GY as Material.

*Synchro Summon 1 "Wind Witch" Synchro Monster from your Extra Deck, by banishing monsters you control, in your hand, and/or in your GY as Material.

*Xyz Summon 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" Xyz Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters you control, in your hand and/or in your GY as Material.

Moonlight Fusion

Normal Spell

Fusion Summon 1 Beast-Warrior Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters you control and/or monsters in your hand as Material. Once per turn, during either player's Battle Phase: If a "Moonlight" monster you control inflicted battle damage to your opponent; you can activate this card from your hand or GY, as if it were a Quick-Play Spell .

**Yuri**

Predator Plant Aldrovanda Centipede

1000 ATK/ 700 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ P.S. 1/ Plant/ Pendulum/ Effect

P / Once per turn: You can Fusion Summon 1 DARK Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters you control as Material. If a DARK Fusion Monster you control is destroyed by battle or by card effect: You can destroy this card in your Pendulum Zone; Special Summon that monster, also it gains 800 ATK.

M / If this card is used as Material for a Fusion Summon: You can Special Summon 1 "Predator Plant" monster from your Deck. You can only use this effect of "Predator Plant Aldrovanda Centipede" once per turn. A Fusion Monster summoned using this card as Material gains 1000 ATK.

Predator Plant Arum Basilisk

2300 ATK/ 1800 DEF/ DARK/ Level 5/ Plant/ Fusion/ Effect

2 "Predator Plant" monsters

If this card is Fusion Summoned: You can place a Predator counter on all monsters your opponent controls, and if you do, any of those monsters that are Level 2 or higher become Level 1 as long as they have a Predator counter. While this card is face-up on the field: The ATK and DEF of all monsters your opponent controls with Predator Counters becomes 0.

Predator Plant Utricularia Kraken

2 "Predator Plant" monsters

1700 ATK/ 2400 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ Plant/ Fusion/ Effect

Gains ATK equal to the number of Predator counters on the field X200. All monsters with Predator counters must attack this card, if able. Once per turn: You can tribute 1 monster your opponent controls with a Predator counter; draw 1 card.

Predator Plant Leviamphora _(Donjusticia)_

? ATK/ 3000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 9/ Plant/ Fusion/ Effect

1 DARK Fusion Monster + 1+ DARK monsters

This card's Original ATK is equal to the number of Materials used in its Fusion Summon X500 (+1000 additional ATK for each Fusion Monster used as Material). Your opponent cannot Special Summon monsters whose ATK is lower than the this card's current ATK. Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can destroy 1 face-up Spell/Trap Card you control; Place 1 Predator counter on each face-up monster your opponent controls, also any of those monsters that are level 2 or higher become Level 1 as long as they have a Predator counter. If an opponent's monster with a Predator counter attacks or activates its effect: You can negate that attack or effect; and if you do, equip that monster to this card as an Equip Spell Card.

**Mayu**

Serpendine - Ivy the Silent Mimic

1200 ATK/ 500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Reptile/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your GY) by tributing 1 "Serpendine Token" you control. You can only Special Summon "Serpendine – Ivy the Silent Mimic" once per turn this way. Once per turn: You can send 1 "Serpendine" monster from your Deck to your GY; this card gains the effects of that monster until the End Phase.

Serpendine - Crimson the Burning Venom

1800 ATK/ 300 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Reptile/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your GY) by tributing 1 "Serpendine Token" you control. You can only Special Summon "Serpendine – Crimson the Burning Venom" once per turn this way. Once per turn: You can Tribute 1 other "Serpendine" monster you control; destroy the monster your opponent controls with the highest ATK (your choice, if tied), and if you do, inflict damage to your opponent equal to that monster's original ATK. This card cannot declare an attack the turn you activate this effect. If this card is destroyed by battle or by card effect: Inflict damage to your opponent equal to the number of "Serpendine Tokens" you control X500.

Serpendine - Amber the Rookie Soldier

600 ATK/ 500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 2/ Reptile/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your GY) by tributing 1 "Serpendine Token" you control. You can only Special Summon "Serpendine – Amber the Rookie Soldier" once per turn this way. You can send this card from your hand to your GY: Add 1 "Serpendine" card from your Deck to your hand. If this card is tributed via the effect of a "Serpendine" monster you control: You can Special Summon 1 "Serpendine Token" (Reptile/ Normal/ DARK/ Level 3/ 800 ATK/ 0 DEF.) You can only use each effect of "Serpendine - Amber the Rookie Soldier" once per turn.

Serpendine - Azula the Poisonous Arrow

1000 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 3/ Reptile/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your GY) by tributing 1 "Serpendine Token" you control. You can only Special Summon "Serpendine – Azula the Poisonous Arrow" once per turn this way. Once per turn: you can Tribute 1 other "Serpendine" monster you control; this card can attack your opponent directly this turn. You can banish this card from your GY: Send 1 "Serpendine" monster from your hand to your GY; and if you do, inflict damage to your opponent equal to that monster's original ATK.

Serpendine - Viola the Berserk Reaper

2300 ATK/ 0 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ Reptile/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your GY) by tributing 1 "Serpendine Token" you control. You can only Special Summon "Serpendine – Viola the Berserk Reaper" once per turn this way. If this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can change this card to face-down Defense Position, destroy all other monsters you control; and if you do, inflict damage to your opponent equal to the combined original ATK of those monsters. This card cannot be flipped face-up until the End Phase of your next turn. A monster Fusion Summoned or Dark Fission Summoned using this card as Material cannot be destroyed by battle.

Serpendine - Ebanee the Swift Scout

2000 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 5/ Reptile/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your GY) by tributing 1 "Serpendine Token" you control. You can only Special Summon "Serpendine – Ebanee the Swift Scout" once per turn this way. Once per turn: You can Tribute 1 other "Serpendine" monster you control; this turn, this card can attack all monsters your opponent controls, once each. A Fusion Monster or Dark Fission Monster summoned using this card as Material gains this effect:

*Your opponent cannot target this card with card effects.

Serpendine – Coatlicue the Clutch Mother _(Donjusticia)_

0 ATK/ 2900 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ Reptile/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your GY) by tributing 1 "Serpendine Token" you control. You can only Special Summon "Serpendine – Coatlicue the Clutch Mother" once per turn this way. "Serpendine Tokens" you control cannot be targeted for attacks or by your opponent's card effects and cannot be destroyed by card effects. Once per turn: You can gain LP equal to the number of "Serpendine Tokens" you control X500. If this card is sent to the GY or tributed: You can Special Summon a number of "Serpendine Tokens" (Reptile/ Normal/ DARK/Level 3/ATK 800/DEF 0) to your field, equal to the number of Monsters your opponent controls.

Serpendine - Medusa the Snake Queen

2600 ATK/ 1600 DEF/ Level -7/ Dark Fission/Effect

1 Level 5 or higher "Serpendine" monster - 1+ "Serpendine" monsters

If this card is Dark Fission Summoned: You can make this card gain ATK equal to number of Materials used in this card's Dark Fission Summon X500, until the End Phase of this Turn. Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can send 1 face-up "Serpendine" monster from your Deck to the GY; Negate the effects of all monsters your Opponent controls, also halve those monster's ATK. If this card is destroyed: You can send all face-up "Serpendine" monsters from your Deck to your GY; Inflict damage to your opponent equal to the number of monsters sent to the GY by this effect X500. If this card is destroyed and sent to the GY: Special Summon it during the End Phase.

Serpendine Palace

Field Spell

Halve the original ATK of all face-up monsters on the field, except "Serpendine" monsters. Each time your opponent Normal or Special Summons a monster(s): Special Summon a "Serpendine Token" (Reptile/ Normal/ DARK/ Level 3/ 800 ATK/ 0 DEF) to your field. If this card is destroyed: You can destroy all "Serpendine Tokens" you control; Special Summon as many "Serpendine" monsters from your GY as possible, up to the number of destroyed Tokens.

Serpendine Multiplication

Quick-Play Spell

Special Summon 2 "Serpendine Tokens" (Reptile/ Normal/ DARK/ Level 3/ 800 ATK/ 0 DEF.) If a "Serpendine" monster(s) you control would be destroyed by battle or card effect: You can banish this card in your GY instead. You can only activate 1 "Serpendine Multiplication" per turn.

Serpendine Shrine _(Donjusticia)_

Continuous Spell

You can also tribute "Serpendine" monsters from your hand or Deck when activating the effect of a "Serpendine" monster that requires you to tribute 1 "Serpendine" monster you control. If you would Tribute Summon a "Serpendine" monster, you can also use this card as one of the tributes. You can banish this card from your GY: Add 1 "Yami no Kakubunretsu" from your Deck or GY to your hand.

Serpendine Medusa Gazer

Normal Trap

You can only activate 1 "Serpendine Medusa Gazer" per turn. Activate only if a "Serpendine" monster you control is targeted for an attack. Apply one of the following effects:

*Change all monsters you control to Defense Position.

*Negate that attack, and if you do, that monster is changed to Defense Position, also its ATK and DEF become 0 and it cannot activate its effects.

You can banish this card from you GY: Special Summon 1 "Serpendine Token" (Reptile/ Normal/ DARK/ Level 3/ 800 ATK/ 0 DEF).

Serpendine Defense Mechanism

Continuous Trap

While you control a "Serpendine Token": "Serpendine" monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle. Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can target 1 "Serpendine" monster you control, except a "Serpendine Token"; this turn, its ATK becomes double its Original ATK, also destroy it during the End Phase. If this card is destroyed: You can target 1 "Serpendine" monster in your GY; Special Summon it, and if you do, Special Summon 1 "Serpendine Token" (Reptile/ Normal/ DARK/ Level 3/ 800 ATK/ 0 DEF.) You can only control 1 face-up "Serpendine Defense Mechanism."

And of course, the one and only…

Yami no Kakubunretsu _(Donjusticia)_

Normal Spell

Cards and effects cannot be activated in response to the activation of this card or its effects. Negate the effects of all cards your opponent controls (These changes last until the effects of this card resolve). Dark Fission Summon 1 Dark Fission Monster from your Extra Deck, using your cards that are banished, on your field or in your hand or GY as Material.

**Action Cards**

Inner Fury _(Donjusticia)_

Target 1 monster you control: It cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects; also it gains 600 ATK. The monster targeted by this effect must attack all monsters your opponent controls, also your opponent can only target that monster for attacks. These changes last until the end of the turn.

Muteki _(Donjusticia)_

Target 1 monster you control: This turn, it cannot be destroyed by battle or by card effects.

Refresh

Target 1 monster you control that has its effects negated: Its effects are no longer negated.

Illusion Guard

Change all Attack Position monsters on the field to Defense Position.

…

**Miscellaneous Card Trivia**

"Moonlight Green Peafowl" is not named "Moonlight Green Peacock" because a peacock is male.

"En Wreath" is a pun on 'enwreathe.'

Most of the Main Deck 'Serpendine" monsters is based on a different kind of snake; Ivy is a Vine Snake, Crimson is a Pit Viper, Azula is a Banded Sea Krait, Ebanee is a Black Mamba, Amber is a Garter Snake and Viola is the King Cobra.

Coatlicue is the Aztec Snake Goddess.

'Muteki' means 'Invincible' or 'Invincibility'

* * *

 **And now, because these chapters were originally meant to be posted before Christmas and I don't want this to bit to go to waste, Rin will be performing a cover of 'Jingle Bells'**

 **Rin: Jingle Bells**

 **Jingle Bells**

 **Jingle all the Way**

 **Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh**

 **Hey!**

 **Jingle Bells**

 **Jingle Bells**

 **Jingle all the Way**

 **Oh what fun it is to ride in a one horse open sleigh**

 **Hey!**

 **I'm stuck inside a game**

 **With Yugo who is lame**

 **He keeps taking my stuff**

 **Damn stop I've had enough!**

 **Can Sora share some cake?**

 **Yuto's hair is so fake**

 **The two of us we are not twins  
**

 **But Yuzu has my face  
**

 **Oh!**

 **Jingle Bells**

 **Yuri smells**

 **Leo jumped on bail**

 **Yusei-Go is the best bike  
**

 **And Ruri's the worst girl!**

 **Jingle Bells**

 **Yuya smells**

 **I now own it all**

 **All of those dumb Baka Boys**

 **Will bow before me now!**

 **Or else….**

 **( _walks off stage)_**

 **Thank you Donny for writing the Duel, I hope you all enjoyed.**

 **Maybe I should do this kind of gag next Christmas.  
**

 **Zarc: ZARCMAS!**

 _ **(Ray whacks him with Yuzu's fan)**_

 **See you next time.**


	9. An Entertaining Battle Royal

**Hey, how we all doing? Certainly been a while since the last update. I've been helping Donny with some SoR stuff as a thanks for all the help he's had in this story's development. Speaking of which….**

 **This story is now just short a year old! *Blows a noise maker!* Where did the time go?**

 **Anyway, today is a bit of a breather chapter compared to the drama in the last few chapters. But that doesn't mean we won't have a few interesting developments. Including a pretty long Lancer Battle Royal. I'm not gonna spoil anything, so you'll have to read to find out what I mean.**

 **Yu-Gi-Oh! is not mine.**

 **Oh and I've done some kind of opening or whatever for fun. Brownie points for those who can figure out what the song is from.**

 **Now if you'll excuse me, I'm gonna go put ice over my eyes or something…..**

* * *

A weak gust of wind blew low to the ground, scattering scraps of old newspaper and torn up cards. The barren streets were speckled with people wandering through the desolate land. A chorus of barks and growls echoed through the alleyways, stray cats and dogs scavenging for food. Most of the buildings that towered over the near-lifeless city were being rebuilt, construction workers working day and night to repair what was once a thriving city.

Not even quarter of a century ago, Crown City had been a paradise, on par with Heartland in the Xyz Dimension. But now, it was nothing more than a den of raiders and hooligans that plagued those who tried to repair the ruined city.

This was the fate of what was now known as the Dark Dimension.

If you asked anyone how or why it became like this, they would tell you it was because of a war, more catastrophic and horrific than any prior struggle in recent history. The younger generation had no idea of how it all started, and many adults who had lived throughout an era of violence would say they couldn't remember what sparked the chain of events that lead to the near destruction of their world, but those who did remember claimed it all started because of a power struggle over a certain item. No one remembered who threw the first punch, but everything escalated to the point that soon, the entire world was involved in the conflict.

A conflict that spanned the course of fifty years.

Then, one day, a group of refugees and survivors rose up, led by a man who claimed to be from another dimension. Within fifteen years, that man grew in power and credibility, until he and his followers ended the Great War, uniting the war torn nations under their banner. Tired of the responsibilities, the national leaders all choose to give power to that man

The man that was now ruling over the Dark Dimension as High Priest of the Duel Temple, lorded as the Ruler of Time and the one true savior.

Cronus.

Of course, Leiko Hisakawa, age sixty, knew much about the war. Despite living most her life in an era of violence and bloodshed, she was a wise and loveable woman, provided you don't get on her bad side. One of the ways being if you calling her old….

Like the pour sap she was currently holding in a headlock.

"Okay, okay, I'm sorry!" He gasped, feeling as if his soul was as the peak of his throat. "You're not old."

Smirking, Leiko released him from her iron grasp. "That's what I thought. Anyone else think I'm old!"

No one dared answer, instead returning to their drinks and games. Satisfied with the lack of a response, Leiko returned to behind the counter were some customers had been waiting what seemed like ages.

"Sorry about that," the experienced woman said nonchalantly. "So, what did you want again?"

"I'll have a shot of whisky and he'll have bourbon." One customer responded.

After spending a decade working to the bone during the Great War, Leiko had been honorably discharged for her years of service. Settling down in Crown City a few years prior to its decimation, she had opened up and operated a bar she had aptly dubbed "Leiko's." It was your average drinking spot, dim lights, a pool table, couple of dart boards, an impressive collection of whiskeys, gins, vodkas and other assorted drinks displayed beyond the counter top.

"Don't listen to him Leiko-chan," the second customer said, "You don't even look a day over thirty."

Leiko smirked, removing a stray strand of her greying black locks. Despite the wrinkles that slowly formed on her face, the fire in her emerald eyes was as powerful as it was during her youth. Grabbing a pair of shot glasses, she poured the alcoholic beverages into them before handing them over to her patrons.

"I'd hate to be on the receiving end of your anger."

"Meh, that was nothing," Leiko scoffed as she rolled up her sleeve and revealed a bite scar on her right arm. "You see this? I got that while I was in the Amazon during the war. We got lost in the jungle when we ran into a bunch of crocs."

"Yeesh, that's a nasty scar." Another customer said as she sat down at the bar.

"You should have seen the one I gave him!" Leiko boasted, a proud smile plastered on her face. "We ate like kings that night!"

"You've got to be the craziest woman I've ever met!" Declared one of the first two customers.

"Thank you." Leiko winked.

"So, what made you become a bartender instead of a lion tamer?" Asked the third customer.

"Hey, I don't go around questioning your life choices," Leiko hissed as she washed a glass with a towel. "I just wanted to do something low-key but successful."

"I'm impressed people still come here, seeing as how your granddaughter was declared a traitor and effectively exiled by Lord Cronus." Remarked customer number two.

Leiko stopped scrubbing the glass at the very mention of her granddaughter. Hikari- Mayu as she had been christened after entering the Duel Temple, at least that was what see heard- had been declared a traitor who threatened to ruin Cronus' plan for the salvation of their world. Leiko had seen many things in her life, but her only grandchild being dubbed an enemy of the _world_ itself had been the most shocking.

She wished she had been there when it happened, or that she at reached out to Hikari at some point. But, communication with the Duel Temple was very scarce, not at all helped by the strict regulations regarding acolytes of a certain Level. It had been over five years since she last heard a word form Hikari, and now….

"What did I say about butting into my personal life?" Leiko growled in a hostile tone.

The first customer whacked his friend on the head. "You want to end up like that guy?"

"Sorry…."

Gazing over her shoulder, Leiko stared at a picture held on the wall. It was her when she was _slightly_ younger, accompanied by two small children, ones whom everyone knew of. The first was the traitor, Hikari, though at that age her hair was a regular blonde instead of the bleached white that was prominent in the wanted pictures. The other was the most recent member to join the Duel Priests, and the youngest member overall.

Yusuke, the boy that her granddaughter had met on the streets and hid in their house for three weeks before they were found out. The same boy that become inseparable from Hikari to the point Leiko had unofficially adopted him as a second grandchild. A child who had lost his parents during the final stages of the war, yet never lost the desire to protect those who couldn't defend themselves.

When her granddaughter was designated as the enemy, Leiko could see the torn look in Yusuke's eyes as he was elevated to the status of Duel Priest. Whatever had happened, she knew that her granddaughter had planted a seed of doubt into the boy's heart. Cronus had often proclaimed that Evil wasn't born, but made, and Yusuke was conflicted on whether or not he qualified as evil.

" _Hikari, Yusuke…. What happened that caused the two of you to severe the close bond you had?"_

* * *

*A close up shot on Yuya's eye, which changes to that of Yuto's eye, then to Yugo, Yuri, Yuji, Yuta and Yusuke's eyes respectively, pans to the right. Afterwards the shot changes to that of the Arc V logo, the subtitle 'Beyond the Pendulum' added underneath, plastered in front of seven Earths, representing the Seven Dimensions. Yuya's Pendulum briefly appears, swing back and forth before the log fades*

 **Legend Is Born**

 **Rising! Shining!** *The silhouettes of the Three Universe Magicians appears in between the Seven Dimensions, each raising their held objects*

 **Shiroka Kuro Hikari to Yami Kono Sekai no KONTORASUTO wa** *Images of Yuzu with an unknown Melodious monster, Gongenzaka with Susano-O, Sawatari with Big Star, Reiji with a Hell Armageddon, Sora with Mad Chimera, Dennis on a trapeze with Trapeze Magician, and lastly Tsukikage with Shingetsu appear before transitioning to Yuya drawing a card while his Pendulum emits a bright light*

 **Aimai Yurusarezu** *Switch to a shot of Mayu frowning while surrounded by darkness, the faces of Yusuke, Cronus, Vector, Kiryu, Venus and five shaded ones appearing around here. A bright light appears and disperses the darkness, and Mayu looks up to see the outline of Biograph Magician holding a javelin in her hand.

*A brief shot of the four original Yu-Boys' faces, but both of Yuri's eyes and one of Yuya's has mysteriously turned green, while both Yuto and Yugo have yellow eyes*

 **Isogashii Jikan no Naka de** *A panning up shot of Yuto and Ruri returning to Heartland (still under reconstruction), being welcomed by Kaito, Allen and Sayaka. Shun is in the background, and is hidden by shadows. The screen closes up on his face to reveal a scowl*

 **Sentaku wo Semarareteiru** *The image changes to a shot of Yugo and Rin having a Riding Duel (Clear Wing and Winter Bell racing alongside them), Crow, Jack, Carly, Shinji and the orphan trio cheering. The image transitions to shots of Yuri dueling Yusuke (who's shadow has dragon wings) then Serena dueling a female Duel Priest in a frozen city, and finally to a shot of Academia in flames, panning upwards to reveal the hooded figures of Acolytes from the Duel Temple*

 **Itsudatte TAANINGU POINTO *** A scene of Shun falling into darkness, Ruri running towards her brother with tears in her eyes as she tries to grab him*

 **Shousha Haisha sore Dake Janai Darou** * A scene of Yuya and Yuzu walking on opposite sides of the screen with their heads down. Yuya's Pendulum swinging back and forth as various clips of the hardships they had faced play in the background. They lift their heads up to see Zarc and Ray smiling before them, causing the two successors to smile back before activating their Duel Disks, phantasmal images of Odd-Eyes and the same unknown Melodious monster appearing beside them*

 **Legend Is Born** *A scene of Burning Flare Ritual Dragon and Dark Rebellion battling in the sky. Burning Flare unleashes a maelstrom of blue fire at the Xyz Dragon, who retaliates by charging forwards with his electrified fangs, only for…..*

 **Kizudarake demo** *Tri-Tail Link Dragon to appear and grab Dark Rebellion with his three tails. Clear Wing appears and flies into the Link Dragon, before a tag battle between the four dragons breaks out*

 **Kakegae no nai Hikari no Tame** *The scene quickly transitions to Odd-Eyes and Starve Venom rushing forwards and unleashing their attacks against Yusuke's dragon (seen only in silhouette). Yusuke's dragon blocks the attacks before roaring and shooting a hail of dark fireballs from his mouth*

 **Tatakau** *Transition to a scene of the four original Yu-Boys, only with their alternate eyes and cosplaying as the Four Zarc Magicians (Yugo's outfit being a male version of White Wing Magician's, as well as having an axe that resembles Clear Wing's wing instead of a wand), standing in the dark void watching as Ray defeats Zarc for the first time*

 **Yuzurenu Negai** *Shots of Yuzu beside the unknown Melodious, Wing Diva and two other unknown Choirs surrounded by a storm of petals and music notes, Serena alongside Cat Dancer raising her daggers under the shining full moon, Rin riding Winter Bell in a massive winter storm, Ruri holding onto Assembly Nightingale as she flies alongside a flock of song birds*

 **Youmei Suru *** Shots of Nova and a queenly woman with Monarch Butterfly wings holding out a sword while a swarm of butterflies gathered, Kasumi Speed Dueling in Link VRAINS as Marine Mask with Mist Artist splattering droplets of water all around, and finally to Mayu standing in front of an image two snakes biting each other's tails superimposed over the sun*

 **Kiseki ga aru sa... RAISU TO ZA TOPPU** *The screen rotates around Yuya, now wearing armor that resembled Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon, with one of his eyes glowing green., as he leaps up. He then smiles as he draws a card from his Deck and holds it up to the sky before the card glows*

*A panning image of an eight-year old Zarc with his arms around Ray and the third child, the shadows of the four dragons and Three Magicians hovering behind them. The image changes to Cronus in a Duel, a massive draconic shadow above him and staring down at the opponent. It changes once again to Supreme King Dragon Zarc facing off against a dragon that can only be presumed to be Ray's Integration form*

*Screen pans right to a shot of the Counterparts and Lancers standing together, watching the sun set over the City from the Original Dimension*

 **Legend Is Born** *Everyone pulls out a card and looks at it*

 **Rising! Shining!** *Yuya leaps forward as the screen ends on an image of the eight original Counterparts, standing in front of the world. On the right side of the screen are the Lancers with their Duel Disks ready, while on the left are the Duel Priests, ready for battle. Mayu's frowning face appears above the Earth, the right half of her hair being a normal blonde while the left is her current platinum blonde.

* * *

Within his chamber of the Duel Temple, Cronus conjured up a phantasmal clock, hands rotating so swiftly they appeared to be non-existent. It was a simple power of his, the ability to tap into one of the infinite histories that flow throughout the real of time. The trait allowed him to view histories yet untold, and tales that had been long forgotten. However, the ability was more complicated than it seemed. The future was an unknown territory, constantly changing at the flick of a wrist. As Cronus went deeper and deeper into the future, the more tangled and complex the branching pathways become. It was why he choose to rather view the events of the past and what was happened, or what could have been.

Hands stopping at the six o'clock position, the clocked opened like a set of doors. Slowly, the image of a laboratory eased into the frame of the clock. It wasn't pristine, rather it was in tatters. Paperwork and data notes were scattered across the floor, lights flickering on and off as smoke emitted from what was left of a destroyed machine in the center of the lab. A number of scientists, faces obscured by the small screen, looked at the scene in shock, while several others had been laying on the floor, knocked out cold by the intensity of the events just prior.

" _Dad?"_

The sound of a young boy came seemingly out of nowhere, causing the group of scientists to turn around, discovering that a trio of children were now standing in the room. Two of them gazed in surprise at the carnage and destruction that the lab had been filled with, while the third payed no heed, attention focused on the man in the middle of the room.

" _Where's my dad?"_ The child asked in a frightened voice, a tone that no child of eight years should have to use.

The central figure frowned. " _I'm sorry Daiki. You're father, he's-"_

Before the figure could finished, Cronus made a crushing gesture with his right hand, dispersing the image before him. Wiping away a stray tear that had made its way across his cheek, the High Priest exhaled from a combination of sadness and exhaustion. Even so many years later, everything that had happened during days had engraved themselves into his heart and stayed there.

" _Why do you continue to torture yourself?"_

Reacting to the voice, Cronus turned his head, and saw a figure hovering before him. It was a dark-purple skinned man who resembled Yuya's Timegazer Magician, wearing a dark purple body suit. His face almost covered entirely, apart from his eyes, and a cape, pattered with dozens of shifting roman numerals, hung from the side of his hips. In his hand he carried a sword that resembled a massive tuning fork. The figure's gaze was filled with the wisdom and experience of a thousand life times, something no human could ever hope to achieve. The figure was known by many pseudonyms, across many cultures, but there was only one true name that could accurately describe the being who watched over time.

Chronograph Magician.

" _Every day for the last few years, you have rewatched that moment."_ The temporal mage spoke softly, the sound of his words echoing throughout the chamber. _"And every day I watch you torment yourself to the point of tears. Why?"_

Cronus turned his head away from the magician. "I do it as a way to honor my father. The technology he had worked on is what shall help save this dimension. His research is the foundation for the Chronos machine. You know this, just as you knew Zarc and Ray's successors would be separated from one another through Biograph's power."

" _Yes."_ Chronograph replied. _"But that was just one possible outcome. It was entirely possible that that they would have been resurrected at a later time, or not at all. The future is shrouded in mystery, and the past is known. That's why the 'now' is called the present. It's a gift."_

Cronus raised an eyebrow as he exited his chamber, automatic doors sliding open. "Are you going somewhere with these cliché quotes?"

Chronograph chuckled lightly. _"I suppose having been around for so long I would tend to say the most overused phrases. My point is that, I've seen your face every time you visit that scene. People tend to make that face only with special circumstances."_

"And those being?" The High Priest asked as the two walked through the brick and iron hallways of the central Temple.

" _If a piece of their soul is torn out."_ The Duel Spirit answered with a serious tone.

"As usual, you have the subtlety of a baseball bat to the face." Cronus chuckled, before his expression turned hard as stone. "I do all of that as a way to remind myself why I'm doing this. I lost everything I ever had before I was sent to this Dimension, but now I lead this world, and the people view me as a God. Kind of overkill if you ask me."

Chronograph merely shrugged.

"But, even with all the restoration attempts the other Priests and I are making, it still isn't enough to prevent the inevitable. The damage done to this world is too great, and if we don't complete the Chronos machine, then our world is lost."

" _And your justifications for potentially starting another war?"_

"Desperate times call for desperate measures." Cronus answered. "Though perhaps what Mayu said that day is true, this isn't the most peaceful way of resolving this dilemma, but what other choice do we have? Seriously, I want to know."

Chronograph gave a brief chuckle, before his expression turned solemn. _"I wish I could be of more help. But,"_ the magician offered as his mood lightened _, "If I were you'd, I'd check in with Tachibana. He's having an interesting conversation right about now"_

Cronus raised an eyebrow, Chronograph disappearing before he could ask what he had meant. Regardless, the High Priest walked over towards a nearby door, which opened up as he approached. Almost immediately he caught sight of a male figure looking at a woman through a holographic screen.

"…come on, I'm sure he'll let you take one day off." Said the woman through the screen. She appeared to be early twenties, with soft pink eyes, and a strand of her curly cerulean hair covering her forehead. Upon closer inspection, Cronus saw that she was carrying a baby, swaddled up in a pink blanket. The baby was innocently reaching out for the screen, her little eyes filled with curiosity.

"I'm sorry honey, but I'm very busy." Replied the man. He sounded to be in his mid-forties, and he wore black, military-esque clothes and boots. The entire outfit was decorated with red accent marks, and on the man's right forearm was the Dark Dimension duel disk. His eyes were a dark grey, hard as stone but held a certain compassion to them, and his cerulean hair was slowly starting to turn gray. "Besides, I'm sure Cronus wouldn't approve."

"Wanna bet?" Cronus jokingly asked. Now aware of his presence, the man got down on one knee and placed a fist over his heart, while the woman bowed her head.

"Lord Cronus, I didn't…." The woman began, before Cronus held up his hand, signaling her to stop.

"Please Ayaka," Cronus said as he entered the room, doors closing behind him. "No need for the formalities. If you ask me, it's weird for a person to refer to their godfather in such a way. How is your husband doing?"

"Hayate's doing fine." Ayaka replied, the baby in her hands letting some spittle escape her lips. "I just got off the phone with him, he said he'd be arriving in Cairo any moment now to help with the restoration movement."

"I see," Cronus said, attention turning towards the baby, who was now looking at him with wide eyes. "And this must be Haruka. May I?"

"Of course." Ayaka said as she took Haruka and held her up towards the screen. "Haruka honey, this is your Uncle Cronus. Say hi sweetie."

Haruka smiled brightly as she waved her little arms playfully, giggling gleefully as she did so.

"She's absolutely precious." Cronus smiled, before turning his attention towards the person whose room he had entered. "And she's got her grandfather's nose. Don't you think so Tachibana?"

"Haha, very funny." The man, Tachibana, laughed sarcastically.

Rolling his eyes, Cronus returned his attention to Ayaka. "From what I hear, her first birthday's coming up soon."

"Yes, just two weeks from now." Replied Ayaka as her daughter attempted to start pulling at her hair. "And I was hoping to get her grandfather to come, but he says he's 'working'."

"Well, let's see about that." Cronus smirked with a treacherous gleam in his eye. "I'll straighten him out. It was nice talking you again Ayaka. Tell your husband I said hello."

"Yes sir." She replied before turning off the video call.

Cronus turned his attention towards Tachibana, who asked "What?"

"You are going to that party." Cronus stated bluntly.

"Sir, I have duties and responsibilities to the Temple. Duties that _you_ assigned to me." Tachibana protested.

"Well I'm assigning you a new one, going to your granddaughter's first birthday." Cronus stated as he smugly walked past his fellow Duel Priest. "Also, responsibilities? If I remember correctly Masaru, you got your high school girlfriend pregnant before you got drafted into the Great War."

Tachibana opened his mouth to retaliate, before he realized he had no counter. "Got me there," he chuckled.

During his youth, Masaru Tachibana had been rather reserved and mature for his age. He never got into fights, looked after his family and protected his friends, a model citizen. But his was still a teenager, a hormone addled one at that. One night, he and his girlfriend Emiri decided to 'confirm their love for each other' in secret. Protection was there of course, both of them agreed on that. It was a night they never forgot. Of course, the very next day, Tachibana had been drafted into the Japanese army, and left to fight a week later. Not even a month after completing training, he received a letter from Emiri stating that she was pregnant, with their child.

"Masaru," Cronus said as he placed a hand on the man's shoulder. "You were the first person I met when I came to this Dimension, and as such you're like a brother to me. I know how much your family means to you, and it's just for one day. I can handle your duties in your stead. Besides, a little party never killed anyone."

"I humbly disagree with you sire."

Both Cronus and Tachibana turned their heads, and saw the masked woman that Cronus had spoken to just yesterday enter the room. Instantly the light-hearted atmosphere that had been present in the room just seconds ago vanished, and was replaced by an aura of seriousness and uncertainty.

"Should have known you were coming," Tachibana muttered. "All the signs were there; temperature dropped, the sky darkened, and I'm pretty sure I just heard a chicken shriek."

The woman, despite wearing a mask that covered her entire face, managed to send Tachibana a glare that sent him recoiling in fear.

"Sire, you know I would never question your judgement. But," the woman spoke in an emotionless tone, "is allowing one of our own to focus on something trivial like a child's birthday party a wise decision? Especially since we have more pressing matters at hand."

"I'm well aware that there is still much to be done, 3rd Mother." Cronus replied. "However, if we continue to focus solely on the salvation of our world, then we lose sight of the little things that have been gifted to us. Things that would help us laugh in times of despair. Without those things, what are we fighting for?"

"Besides," Tachibana interjected, "Don't you remember what is was like to have a family, one that'd you'd do anything for?"

"My life and anyone associated with before I forsook that identity mean nothing to me." 3rd Mother coldly stated. "By doing so, I was able to obtain the power that Lord Cronus has bestowed upon us."

"You speak as if we've been around for centuries, when the Temple's existence has only been a mere decade." Tachibana reminded. "And again with the whole discarding your old life for power thing, just because you had some unfortunate luck during the war you-"

Whatever else Tachibana had in mind was halted as the 3rd Mother, quick as lightning, held the blade part of her Duel Disk up against his throat, her hooded figure now oozing a murderous aura.

"Do not think that just because you are our Lord's right hand I will not hesitate to put an end to your miserable existence for venturing into the reaper's territory." 3rd Mother hissed, her faceless mask reminiscent of a snarling wolf.

"I thought I smelled a hint of bloodlust." Came the sound of Vector's voice as he entered the room. "Looks like I showed up at the right time."

"Enough." Cronus demanded, unamused by the infighting of his higher-ups. "I will deal with you in a moment Vector."

Vector merely shrugged.

"You two are my oldest comrades." Cronus said, addressing Tachibana and the 3rd Mother. "You both are cut from different clothe, but that is exactly why I made you both my right and left hands. Despite your differences, you both want the same thing; a place that future generations can call home. Though you may not agree with each other's life styles, both of your perspectives are necessary to complete Operation Genesis."

"Yes Sire/ Lord Cronus." The two replied simultaneously.

"Operation Genesis, real original name by the way." Vector muttered.

"And Vector, you are still on probation for your lack of responsibility," Cronus reminded. "And your little remark just now is not helping your case."

"What can I say," Vector shrugged. "I call it as I see it. Though you might be interested in finding out some juicy details about what Zarc and Ray's little kids are up to."

"That really begs the question, how exactly are they related?" Tachibana wondered aloud. "That is one complicated family tree."

"What are the eight incarnations doing?" Cronus asked directly.

Vector smirked as he leaned against the wall. "Well last night they had a little encounter with our dear Mayu. She dueled two of them and lost before running off."

"That girl is but a minor nuisance," 3rd Mother spat. "However she does have one of the Three Magicians, and has found a way to block us from tracking her movements across the Dimensions."

"Clever little flower isn't she?" Vector snarked, "But anyway, it turns out that the eight of them are all going their separate ways, the six that once kicked the bucket are heading back to their own dimensions."

"And why does this concern us?" asked Tachibana.

"Well besides the fact that my dear old friends Yuto and Ruri are finally going back home, it means that after their encounters with the Acolytes and now Mayu, that idiot Leo's son and his Lancers will probably be focused more on protecting the eight of them and trying to figure out our agenda." Vector explained. "While their busy running around like a headless chicken, we can start preparing for another battle right after we decimate Academia."

Cronus sighed. "I don't know what's worse; your plan, or the fact that I agree with it?"

"Just trying to help."

"Perhaps," Tachibana addressed 3rd Mother, "We can finally make use of your little pet. How is he doing by the way?"

"As thirsty for vengeance as the day he landed in the Temple Grounds." The female priest droned. "It's truly pathetic."

"But he's motivated." Cronus stated. "We can use that to further confuse the Lancers, and I know exactly who to send him after. In the meantime, we must start preparing for the assault. Tachibana, send word to Ethan and Anastasia to halt what they are doing and return to the Temple at once."

"So tell Ethan to ditch book club and interrupt Anastasia while she's probably having a one-night stand with some random guy she met while she was in Italy?" Vector quipped before letting out a sinister laugh.

"And Vector," the High Priest said reluctantly, "tell Yusuke and Venus they are to meet me in the Western Temple at once. I need them for an important reconnaissance mission."

"Not what I was hoping for, but better than watching Acolytes being all happy and junk." Vector replied, a little disappointed he couldn't do something more exciting.

"And 3rd Mother, tell your pet that his time for revenge has come." Cronus ordered, earning a bow from the ominous woman.

With their tasks at hand, the gathering of Priests dispersed, all ready to complete their part.

" _While the Lancers are distracted, I can pay some old friends a visit."_ Cronus growled internally as the face of the person he hated most came mind. _"We have a lot to catch up on Leo…."_

….

Unaware of the events transpiring in the Dark Dimension, the eight counterparts had gathered with their friends and family at LDS, ready to all return to their respective Dimensions.

"Wow, we're really going back," Said Yuto, brimming with anticipation. "It's been so long since we've been to Heartland that I feel like I've forgotten what home looks like."

"I know," added Ruri. "I wonder how it looks now compared to how we left it."

"While only a third of the city has been repaired, it's still enough for people to continue with their lives." Answered the elder Kurosaki. "It's rough, but much more preferable to living in a complete warzone."

"It's true," Dennis chimed as he joined the conversation. "While I may only visit on weekends, do to my education at Academia and all, I can reassure you that your city is on its way to becoming the paradise it once was. And all your friends are ready to welcome you back with open arms!"

Meanwhile….

"Even though we just visited, it feels weird going back home to the City," Rin remarked. "Especially since Tops and Commons are no more. What do you think Yugo?"

"…and then if there's a garage, we can build a new D-Wheel from scratch!" Yugo cheerfully explained to Sawatari, having not heard Rin's question.

"Well, when that new D-Wheel is ready and roaring to go, give me a call. I'm looking forward to a rematch with you after our last battle in the Friendship Cup. I don't intended on losing this time!"

"They hit it off surprisingly fast." Gongenzaka replied as he and Rin watched the two continue to converse between themselves.

"I know. It's like they've been buddies from birth."

Meanwhile….

"Hey," Serena said as she placed a hand on Yuri's shoulder. "Don't worry, everything's gonna be fine."

"Have you already forgotten our conversation last night? The moment people see me, I'm a dead man."

"Oh come on," snarked Sora as he sat next to Yuri. "So you did some horrible stuff, we've all done things we regret. Besides, ever since Yuya's dad took over, people at Academia have become a lot more forgiving. I'm sure all you have to do is show people you truly are sorry for everything, and then they'll give you a chance."

Yuri looked at Sora with a puzzled expression. "Since when did you want to help me? Both times we met in the past, I was your enemy. So why are you suddenly 'Team Yuri,' so to speak?"

"Yuya says you're trying to change and that he trusts you, that's good enough for me." He smirked before grabbing a chocolate bar from his pocket and breaking off a piece.

"See," Serena smiled as Yuri took the piece from Sora's hand and ate it. "Day two back to life and you've already made two new friends. Plus, Dennis said that he'd hang out with us after he helps Yuto and Ruri get settled in."

"So to recap, my circle of friends consists of Cat Girl, Willy Wonka and Pennywise. This is gonna be fun," Yuri snarked. "Can I get another piece?"

"Didn't Yuya ever tell you never to ask me for candy?" Sora replied in a low voice, a threatening gleam in his eye.

Awkwardly, Yuri turned his head away, not sure how to respond.

From the side, Yuya and Yuzu watched as their counterparts talked and interacted with the other Lancers. It was nice, seeing the six of them all laugh and hang out with other people after being stuck inside the two of them for so long.

"I can't believe they're really leaving." Yuzu sighed, "It's weird, having to say goodbye after living with them so long."

"Not really," Yuya shrugged. "It's less of a 'Goodbye,' and more of a 'See you later.' Right? "

"You know what I mean Yuya. I know we talked about finding a way to separate all of us, but I didn't think that the answered would come to us in the form of another girl with my face right then and there."

Yuzu's thoughts drifted towards the girl that the Fusion duo had fought last night. It was brief, but she knew the silhouette that appeared after the girl had summoned that horrible Dark Fission monster was the same one that had separated the two sets of Counterparts.

" _Biograph Magician."_ That was the monster's name, according to Reiji's father. _"What does that card have to do with Zarc and Ray? How does that girl have it? Who has the last of the Three Magicians? Where does this mystery end?"_

A few minutes later, it was time to split up.

"So, this is really it." Yuzu said nervously. "You're all going home."

"Oi, don't worry. We'll see each other soon. I'm already planning on visiting each of you guys once we me and Rin get settled into our new place." Yugo said with a carefree smile.

"Besides, I'm sure it better if we're aren't all in the same Dimension." Said Yuto, causing the conversation to become serious. "After all, the Dark Dimension is still after us. With all of us together, it makes it easier to be targeted."

"Way to kill the mood Yuto," snarked Yuri. "But he's not wrong though, right now we all might as well have targets painted on our backs."

"Gee thanks, I almost forgot about those guys." Rin snarked, giving the boys an unamused look.

"Actually," Yuzu commented, "Now that you mention the Dark Dimension, anyone going to bring up the girl you two fought last night."

"Oh right, her," Serena hissed.

"Well let's review," Yuya stated as he began listing what they knew about the strange girl they encountered last night. "She's from the Dark Dimension, she looks like you girls, and she has the Biograph Magician card. Did either of you notice anything else?"

Yuri thought about that question, before answering "Well at one point before we dueled, she said that she didn't serve Cronus."

"And based on these comments, Cronus seems to be the person in charge of the Dark Dimension." Rin chimed in with a serious expression.

"Do you think she was telling the truth?"

Yuzu's question shocked the others, who looked at her with curiosity.

"Remember, before my duel the other day? That girl said that I wasn't the one she was looking for?"

"Your point being?" Yuri asked, not seeing where Yuzu was going.

"I mean, what if she attacked me because she thought I was that other girl, and that she isn't on the Dark Dimension's side?"

"I'm getting tired of this…." Yuri muttered exasperatedly, "We may look alike, but we are not Godsdamn clones people! Why does everyone keep confusing us with one another?"

"Tell me about," Serena agreed. "It's like there's some kind of colorblindness epidemic going around."

"Well, we don't know about where this girl's allegiance lies," Ruri chirped. "But I think its best that we all keep our guard up."

"It's time." Called Reiji from the sidelines, signaling it was time for everyone to go home.

"Bye you guys," Yuya said as he gave his counterparts a handshake each. Yuzu and the girls gave each other a group hug, which Serena found a little uncomfortable. Breaking up, the three pairs of counterparts walked over to a Lancer from their respective dimension (or Tsukikage, in the case of Yugo and Rin), and gave the Pendulum Duo a wave goodbye before disappearing in a poof of data.

"Wow," Yuzu whispered. "This was harder than I thought."

Sensing Yuzu's discomfort, Yuya smiled as an idea popped into his head. "Hey now, what happened to my dear _Strong_ Yuzu?"

"Eh!" Yuzu exclaimed, shocked that her boyfriend would resort to using that horrible nickname. Within the span of seconds, she began chasing him around with her harisen held high in the air ready to whack the tomato haired boy so hard…

….

A couple of hours later, the two Entertainment Duelists ventured over to an improved You Show Duel School. Thanks to a combination of Yusho clearing his good name, Yuya's popularity as a Pro Duelist, and financial backing from the Leo Corporation, the once small and rather drab looking school had been reconstructed and expanded. Though not as large as LDS, it was now one of the most reputable Duel Schools in the country, with classes and facilities that neither one thought were once possible.

Though one thing stayed the same; the ideology of Entertainment Dueling was the core philosophy of the school.

 **Action Field: Plain Plain**

 **Tatsuya**

 **1300 LP**

 **Controls Deskbot 001 and Deskbot 009**

 **Deskbot 008 (Scale 1) and Deskbot 007 (Scale 10) active in his Pendulum Zones**

 **No cards in hand**

 **Deskbot Base face-up in the Field Zone**

 **Deskbot 001:** _ **(500 + (500 X 3)) = 2000 ATK**_ **/ (500 + 500 X 3) = 2000 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 1/ Machine/ Tuner/ Effect**

 **Deskbot 009:** _ **(500 + 500) = 1000 ATK**_ **/ (500 + 500) = 1000 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 9/ Machine/ Effect**

 **VS**

 **Opponent**

 **1000 LP**

 **Controls Chaos Hunter**

 **No cards in hand**

 **Chaos Hunter:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ Fiend/ Effect**

Tatsuya's opponent gave a smug smirk. "Neither of your monsters are strong enough to overcome my monster's ATK. Might as well surrender."

"Surrender? Haven't you learned that Entertainment Duelists give it their all and entertain the crowd by turning the situation in their favor?" Tatsuya declared before gesturing to his monsters. "I tune Level Nine Deskbot 009 with Level One Deskbot 001!"

On command, Tatsuya's small robot monster transformed into a single ring of light, before Deskbot 009 flew through it and transformed into a series of stars. Energy surged before a column of lightning erupted out.

"Synchro Shoukan! Come, Deskbot Jet!"

A pencil case robot, armed with several sharpener-shaped cannons hovered onto the blue haired duelist's field.

 **Deskbot Jet:** _**(500 + (500 X 5)) = 3000 ATK**_ **/ (500 + (500 X 5)) = 3000 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 10/ Machine/ Synchro/ Effect**

"Deskbot Jet's effect! Once per turn, I can destroy one Deskbot card I control as well as another face-up card on the field. I destroy my Deskbot 008 and your Chaos Hunter! Ikay, Eraser Missiles!"

Deskbot Jet pointed its canons at the card in Tatsuya's Pendulum Zone, as well as the whip-wielding warrior on the opponent's field, and fired a hail of erasers carved into the shape of missiles that destroyed both cards. Tatsyua's opponent recoiled in shock as his monster was destroyed.

"Since there is one less Deskbot card on the field, Deskbot Jet loses 500 ATK and DEF," Tatsuya explained as his monster's stats decreased. "Battle! Deskbot Jet attacks you directly!"

On command, Jet's boosters ignited before the whole pencil case rammed into Tatsuya's opponent at high speed.

 **Opponent LP: 1000 – 0**

 **Tatsuya Wins**

Tatsuya smiled as the spectators watching his duel clapped, the Action Field disappearing. His opponent, albeit a little begrudgingly, got to his feet and waved at the audience.

"Tatsyua's really gotten strong hasn't he?" Yuya remarked with a smile.

"I know. I remember the day he joined the school, he was your first fanboy. Or does Sora qualify for that role?" Yuzu playfully joked.

"Yuya-oniichan! / Yuzu-oneechan!" Came the sound of three children. The couple looked over to see Tatsuya, as well as Ayu and Futoshi, ran up the stairs towards them.

"Great job out there! You guys were great." Yuya cheered, "You've all turned into amazing duelists."

"We've been studying extra hard!" Ayu cheerfully said, "I even picked up Fusion Summoning to be just like you, Yuzu-oneechan!"

Yuzu smiled, flattered by the girl's big sister worship.

"That's true! And I've learned Xyz Summoning as well!" Futoshi added with a delighted expression. "Maybe one day the three of us will be as strong as the two of you combined!" The child boasted.

"Of course, you've still got a long way to go."

The group of five turned around to see Sawatari coming towards them, Gongenzaka trailing behind.

"I mean, they do have access to all of the Extra Deck summons, and Yuya was the founder of Pendulum Summoning, and they both seem to have the ability to magically create new cards out of nowhere…." The blonde trailed.

"Sawatari, you're rambling." Gongenzaka reprimanded.

"I'm just saying." Sawatari shrugged.

"Hey, don't worry about it." Yuya said cheerfully as he put his arms around the trio of You Show Students. "Win or lose, dueling is all about having fun."

The three kids affirmed Yuya's statement happily, before they heard the call of their instructor forcing them to run off.

"So, why'd the two of you come here?" Asked Yuzu, "We didn't expect the any visitors from other schools."

"Sawatari and I wanted to check on the two of you. We thought the two of you would be depressed is all." Gongenzaka explained. While he didn't have many personal interactions with the other six counterparts, he could imagine his friends would be saddened about their departure.

"I'm fine. Yuzu here's a little more upset, but other than that, we're fine." Yuya replied.

"Typical, it's always the girl who gets emotional." Sawatari crudely remarked, causing Yuzu to slap him with her harisen.

"OW! Yuya, control your woman!" Sawatari cried as a comical bulge appeared on the side of his head.

"What can I say," the Entertainment Duelist half-shrugged. "She's the type of girl who doesn't take people's disrespect lightly. It's one of her best qualities."

"Aww," Yuzu blushed before giving her boyfriend a quick peck on the cheek.

"Can we get to dueling now?" Sawatari hissed at Gongenzaka, earning the attention of Yuya and Yuzu.

The Steadfast Duelist shot Sawatari a brief look, one that told him he said something too soon. "Okay, checking up on the two of you wasn't just the only reason we came here. We wanted to see if you would Duel us."

"Duel?" Yuzu asked, "Why?"

"Seeing as how we might have to go to war again, we need to keep our skills sharp for the next time we encounter those Dark Dimension creeps." Sawatari explained before puffing out his chest like a proud peacock, "Of course, I don't need much practice, I'm as sharp as ever.

"A duel does sound fun," Yuya agreed. "And it would help get our minds off of the others. What do you think Yuzu?"

"Well…. Alright." The pinkette answered with a smile.

A few moments later, after filling the You Show staff in on the situation (minus the specifics, such as a potential war, of course), the four duelists now stood in the center Duel Court, while multiple students watched from the side lines.

"Alright everyone!" came Shuzo's voice over the loud speaker. "Today we have a special treat for all of you. Two of our star alumni, Sakaki Yuya and my own daughter, Hiragi Yuzu, will be facing off against LDS' Sawatari Shingo and the Gongenzaka Dojo's Gongenzaka Noboru, in a battle royal sure to be filled with amazing entertainment for all!"

The student body murmured with anticipation, excited to see a duel between four well known duelists.

"The rules are simple. No player will be allowed to attack anyone who hasn't taken their turn, and when dealing effect damage, the person who activated the card dealing the damage will be allowed to choose the player that damage will be inflicted to! Now, burn up! HOT-BLOODED!"

"Dad…" Yuzu sweat dropped, embarrassed by her father's actions.

"Come on now, let's not keep our audience waiting!" Sawatari cried, ready to duel.

"Now, if everyone is ready, Action Field ON! Field Mahou, Infinite Bridge!"

The Real Solid Vision system underneath the arena floor activated, generating a series of crisscrossing railed walkways that elevated the four duelists above the ground.

"This is the field where Yuzu-oneechan dueled Masumi during the Maiami Championship two years ago!" Ayu cried, recalling the duel where Yuzu made her Fusion Summoning debut.

"This really brings back memories, doesn't it?" Yuya asked with a playful smile on his face.

"Yeah, before our lives got turned into absolute mayhem." Yuzu muttered, "It's nice to be able to look back at the good old days."

"Things have certainly changed since then." Gongenzaka mused. "Still, I, the man Gongenzaka, don't intend on going easy on any of you during this duel."

"Bring it on big guy!" Sawatari boasted. "You're about a hundred years too early to think you can beat me!"

"Calm down Sawatari. This duel is just for fun after all." Yuzu sighed.

"I can't forget that." Sawatari smirked. "No matter situation, I am always ready to give my fans the show only capable from the great Sawatari Theater!" He exclaimed, earning cheers from his fans in the audience.

"Well since everyone's ready, I'll go first!" Yuya declared. "Duelists locked in Battle!"

"Kicking the earth and dancing alongside their monsters!" Yuzu continued, followed by Gongenzaka and then Sawatari.

"They storm through this field!"

"Behold! This is the newest and greatest evolution of Dueling!"

"ACTION-" The four duelists cried as the Action Cards scattered throughout the field.

"-DUEL!"

 **Battle Royal**

 **Sawatari**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **Yuzu**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **Gongenzaka**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **Yuya**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

"I'll be going first, since this was my idea after all!" Sawatari proudly exclaimed. "I'll start this show by activating the Field Spell, Abyss Actor Grand Theater!"

Instantly, the arena was transformed into a massive and luxurious theater, with red curtains and a variety posters depicting the Abyss Actor monsters. Each individual poster seemed to be a parody or playing homage to a famous play such as the classic _Hamlet_ , or more recent works such as _Annie_.

"What do you think? I've created a fitting stage for our duel!" The blonde preened, earning an uproar of cheers from his fans in the audience. "Now then, since I control no monsters, I can use the effect of Grand Theater to add Abyss Actor – Big Star to my Extra Deck face-up."

"Adding a Pendulum monster from your Deck to your Extra Deck." Tatsuya analyzed. "Excellent move."

"Please, please, save your applause for now. Act one is still in motion." Sawatari declared before activating a Spell card. "I activate the Continuous Spell, Abyss Actor's Dynamic Entry."

A card depicting Big Star arriving dramatically on stage appeared next to Sawatari.

"And then," he chuckled, "Using Scale 1 Abyss Actor – Stage Technician and Scale 8 Abyss Actor Dandy Bi-Player, I set the Pendulum Scale!"

Sawatari slammed the two Pendulum cards on the edges of his Duel Disk, the word 'PENDULUM' appearing in rainbow lettering. Two columns of light appeared at his sides, each containing a monster. On the left was a plump goblin monster in workman's overhauls, holding a hammer in one hand and a screwdriver in the other. In the other was a blue-skinned man with a white mustache, a monocle covering one of his eyes, and a fashionable outfit. Both monsters hovered over a '1' and '8' respectively.

"With this, I can summon monsters from Level Two through Seven!" Sawatari cried. "Pendulum Shoukan! Come forth, my monster!"

A glowing portal opened up between the two columns of light before a glowing streak of red light descended unto the field, transforming into Sawatari's signature monster.

 **Abyss Actor – Big Star:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 1800 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 3/ Fiend/ Pendulum/ Effect**

The audience cheered excitedly, the sight of Pendulum Summoning still as amazing as it was in its debut years ago.

Smiling proudly, Sawatari continued on with his turn. "Since I Pendulum Summoned an Abyss Actor monster, Grand Theater now gains an Abyss counter." He explained as the Abyss Actor icon on the curtains behind him began glowing.

 **Abyss Actor Grand Theater: 1 Abyss Counter**

"In addition, the effect of Dynamic Entrance activates. Big Star gains ATK equal to his Level times 100 until my next Standby Phase!"

A pair of bright spotlights shined down on Big Star, causing the actor to strike a pose as his power increased.

 **Abyss Actor – Big Star: 2500 + (100 X 7) = 3200 ATK**

"3200 ATK already!" A surprised Futoshi exclaimed.

"It's already the first turn and he's already summoned a monster with more than 3000 ATK." Ayu murmured, worried about how Yuya or Yuzu would be able to overcome such a challenge.

"Big Star lets me add an Abyss Script from my Deck to my hand since he was Pendulum Summoned. I use this effect to add Abyss Script – Opening Ceremony to my hand." Sawatari explained as the card popped out of his deck. "And then activate it! I gain 500 Life Points for each Abyss Actor monster I control."

 **Sawatari LP: 4000 – 4500**

"I place one card face down, which ends my turn, and with it our first act. You may applaud now." Sawatari stated, causing the crowd to give him a small round of applause.

"Good start." Yuya complemented.

"I see your starting this duel off by strengthening your defenses Sawatari." Yuzu remarked.

Sawatari held out his hand. "That is not my name," he declared, earning confused looks from his opponents. "After years of various and rather long winded titles, I have chosen one that best describes the masterpiece that is I, the great Sawatari Shingo-Sama."

"Oh boy, here we go again." Gongenzaka sweat dropped.

"From now on, I am…" Sawatari paused for dramatic effect. "Shin Sawatari Shingo!"

A banner depicting kanji that spelt out Sawatari's latest title suddenly unfurled itself behind the egotistical blonde.

Cue a stunned silence from everyone else dueling.

"Shin _(New)_ Sawatari….." Yuzu muttered. "So you've basically gone back to your first title!"

"You know what they say, if it isn't broke don't fix it. Besides, I think I prefer this one. The alliterative appeal just rolls off the tongue, don't you think?"

"Let's just nod and act like we agree." Yuya whispered, both his friends shaking their heads for yes.

"Now then, let's see if any of you have what it takes to dethrone the great Shin Sawatari Shingo!"

"I'm going to enjoy this." Yuzu whispered, ready to knock Sawatari down a couple of pegs. Even if he did grow over the years, it didn't hurt to remind him to cool it with his ego once and a while.

"My turn, Draw!" Yuzu announced. "Since you put your own touch on the field Sawatari, I think I'll do the same. I activate the Field Spell, Divine Melodious Stage!"

Instantly, Sawatari's theater transformed into one more suited for Yuzu and her deck. Confetti rained down as the fairy orchestra played their instruments, light refracting off of the crystal chandelier on the ceiling.

"Tsk, this is why I liked it when there could be only one Field Spell at a time." Sawatari huffed, "Ruins the mood."

"Don't worry. Once it's your turn again, it'll change back to your field." Gongenzaka reminded.

"But until then, I'll be showing off my enchanting performance!" Yuzu cried. "I activate the Spell Card, Ostinato! Since I don't control any monsters, I can Fusion Summon a Melodious Fusion monster from my Extra Deck by using monsters from my hand or Deck as Material!"

"Eh! From your Deck?" Yuya exclaimed. He hadn't seen any Fusion Duelist use a tactic like that before.

"I use Aria the Melodious Diva in my hand and send Elegy the Melodious Diva from my Deck to the Graveyard in order to Fusion Summon!" Yuzu declared as the spectral forms of her two monsters appeared before swirling together in a vortex of blue and pink.

"Enchanting melodious voice! Mournful requiem! Blend your voices together and be guided by the strokes of the baton into a new angelic hymn! Yuugo Shoukan! Come forth, prolific master of the written verse! Level 5, Haydina the Melodious Maestra!"

Haydina emerged from the portal surrounded by a swirling storm of flower petals, honey blonde hair glowing in the light of the opera stage. She bowed gracefully before the audience as a melodic song flowed from her throat.

 **Haydina the Melodious Maestra:** _ **2100 ATK**_ **/ 1200 DEF/ Light/ Level 5/ Fairy/ Fusion/ Effect**

"Pretty," Ayu murmured in awe of Yuzu's latest Fusion monster.

"And to summon it using monsters from the Deck as material, Yuzu nee-chan has really gotten stronger." Tatsuya proclaimed.

"Shivers!" Futoshi cried as he did his little dance.

"I, the man Gongenzaka, am impressed by your new tactics Yuzu." The steadfast duelist complemented.

"Well don't praise me yet. This concert is only just beginning. Since I Special Summoned a Melodious monster, the effect of Diving Melodious Stage allows me to add another Melodious monster from my Deck to my hand. I use this effect to add En Angel – Hana, who is always treated as a Melodious monster, to my hand!" Yuzu proclaimed.

"En," Sawatari whispered. "When exactly did you get your hands on that card? As far as I know, the only 'En' cards were the ones that stopped Zarc, so where'd that come from."

"When I was revived after Yuya and Reiji's last duel, Ray's spirit appeared before me and the others," Yuzu explained. "She gave us a few cards that would work in our Decks, as a sort of apology for the mess her father dragged us into. She said it was the least she could have done."

"She couldn't have given you all your own bodies back instead of a couple cards?" Sawatari snarkingly asked, earning a collection of unamused looks from his friends. "Okay, went too far there."

"Anyway…." Yuzu trailed, glaring daggers at Sawatari. "I'll continue our show by bringing out this lovely monster! The heartfelt melody that stirs the blooming flowers, En Angel – Hana!"

An angelic monster that resembled Yuzu appeared to the field in a swirl of flowers petals, singing a passionate and beautiful song. Her eyes were a bright gold, and her snow white hair was tied into two pigtails on the sides of her head, clipped down by blue flower clips, while two pink side tails framed her face. Her attire was a short-sleeved yellow dress that fell a little past the knees, with a pink sash wrapped around her waist and a pair of blue Greek sandals on her feet. Coiling up around her right arm was a pink ribbon decorated with flower embroidery, and hanging from her neck on a silver chain was a pink gem that resembled a stylized 'pi' symbol. Affixed to her back was a set on white angel wings, each one having a few pink feathers that created the shape of a flower.

 **En Angel – Hana/** _ **1000 ATK**_ **/ 1500 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 8/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"It's like Yuzu-oneechan got turned into an angel….." The trio of kids murmured in awe of Yuzu's identical monster.

"Hana's effect! Once per turn, I can tribute her to add a Continuous Spell from my Deck to my hand!" Yuzu announced as her monster belted out a loud note before disappearing in a storm of petals. "I add En Vision to my hand, and then activate it!"

Appearing next to Yuzu was a card depicting an angelic figure standing amidst a series of colorful symbols all merging together.

"Now before we continue, I'd like to pull a page from Yuya's book. Do you mind Yuya?"

"Not at all, knock yourself out!" Yuya replied with a smile.

"Great!" Yuzu exclaimed before turning towards the audience. "I have a question for anybody in our wonderful audience that uses Fusion Summoning. Can anyone explain to us what the card, Future Fusion does?"

"I can!" A spectator called out.

"Okay, so what does that card do?"

"Future Fusion is a Continuous Spell that allows a player to Fusion Summon. During the first Standby Phase after activation, the player who activated the card reveals a Fusion Monster in their Extra Deck and sends the necessary Materials from their Deck to the Graveyard. And then during that player's next Standby Phase, the revealed monster is Fusion Summoned. If either Future Fusion or the summoned monster leaves the field, the other is sent to the Graveyard!" The spectator explained.

"Correct!" Yuzu announced. "Now some of you may be asking 'Why bring up Future Fusion at a time like this?'"

"Because your card has the same effect!" Yuya cried out, realizing where Yuzu was going.

"Yes, but much more powerful. You see," Yuzu began to explain, "En Vision only applies for monsters of five specific archetypes instead of any Fusion in general. However, this card's effect also can be used to summon a Synchro or Xyz Monster instead of a Fusion Monster!"

A collective gasp swept through the arena.

"And if I summon an Xyz Monster, the materials are attached from my Graveyard to that monster once it arrives!" Yuzu added.

"WHAT!" Sawatari cried out. "You have a card like that in your Deck! No fair!"

"Of course," Yuzu said with a somewhat sad expression, "Since I'm facing a number of great opponents, we'll have to wait a long time for my monster to arrive on stage. But I'm sure we'll be well entertained until then. I set one card face down! And then, during my End Phase, the other effect of Ostinato destroys the Haydina and summons the monsters I used to as Fusion Material!"

Yuzu's opponents let out a confused gasp as Haydina vanished is a storm of petals, and let out a louder one as the petals faded to reveal both Aria and Elegy in her place.

 **Aria the Melodious Diva: (1600 + 300 + (300 X 2) = 2500 ATK/** _ **1200 DEF**_ **/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Fairy/ Effect**

 **Elegy the Melodious Diva:** _ **(2000 + 300 + (300 X 2) = 2900 ATK**_ **/ 1200 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 5/ Fairy/ Effect**

"And because they were Special Summoned, both Aria and Elegy's effects activate!" Yuzu exclaimed. "Aria protects my Melodious monsters from being destroyed by battle or be targeted by card effects, while Elegy gives all my Fairy monsters 300 ATK, while preventing them from being destroyed by card effects! And thanks to the effect of Haydina, both gain another 300 ATK for each monster that was used in her Fusion Summon. And because they gained ATK, Haydina's final effect allows me to add Alto the Melodious Songstress from my Deck to my Hand!"

"Quite the chain of effects." Gongenzaka whispered to himself. "With that Aria and Elegy lock, Yuzu's trying to buy time until the effect of En Vision resolves."

"Lastly, Divine Melodious Stage gives me 500 LP for each Melodious monster I control." The pinkette declared as ribbons of music briefly enveloped her body. "And with that my turn ends."

 **Yuzu LP: 4000 – 5000**

"Tsk. You totally copied me FYI!" Sawatari whined.

Gongenzaka rolled his eyes, unamused by Sawatari's complaining. "Draw!" He declared.

"Since my opponent controls at least two monsters, I can Special Summon this monster from my hand. Appear, Superheavy Samurai Big Wara-G!"

A mechanical monster that resembled a pair of wooden sandals pressed together appeared next to the Steadfast Duelist.

 **Superheavy Samurai Big Wara-G:** _ **800 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 5/ Machine/ Effect**

"Next, I Normal Summon Superheavy Samurai Tama-C!"

Materializing next to Gongenzaka was a monster that resembled a mechanical sphere, holding a spear in its hand.

 **Superheavy Samurai Tama-C:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 800 DEF/ DARK/ Level 2/ Machine/ Tuner/ Effect**

"A Tuner already…" Yuya muttered. "I suppose it's only natural for Gongenzaka to fight seriously."

"I tune Level Five Big Wara-G with Level Two Tama-C!" Gongenzaka declared, causing the smaller monster to transform into a pair of rings, while his mechanical footwear become a line of five stars.

""As fast as the wind! As quiet as the forest! Silent ninja, hit the finishing blow!" The Steadfast Duelist chanted as electricity surged throughout the Synchro rings. "Synchro Shoukan! Ideyo! Level 7! Superheavy Ninja Shinobi-AC!"

The electricity died down to reveal a small, violet, mechanical ninja monster holding a staff sitting crisscross besides Gongenzaka.

 **Superheavy Ninja Shinobi-AC: 1200 ATK/** _ **2800 DEF/**_ **EARTH/ Level 7/ Machine/ Synchro/ Effect**

"We've seen Pendulum, Fusion and now Synchro in this duel. All we need now is for Yuya to Xyz Summon and we've got all four Summoning Methods today." Sawatari remarked, pointing out the trend that was going on involving the Extra Deck Summons.

"Maybe I will Xyz Summon when my turn comes Sawatari." Yuya replied jokingly. "But let's save that for later. Now it's Gongenzaka's turn to entertain us with his steel resolve and Steadfast Heart!"

"Thank you for that Yuya. I, the man Gongenzaka, appreciate your words. But back to the duel at hand, I equip Shinobi-AC with both Superheavy Samurai Soul Double Horn and Superheavy Samurai Soul Buster Gauntlet from my hand!" Gongenzaka declared as his ninja became equipped with a set of shoulder pauldrons with massive horns and a massive mechanical hand.

"Due to the effects of my monsters, Shinobi-AC gains 400 DEF and the ability to attack twice so long as I have no Spell or Trap cards in my Graveyard!"

 **Superheavy Ninja Shinobi-AC: 2800 DEF – 3200 DEF**

Sawatari wagged his finger in disappointment. "Your monster maybe as strong as my Big Star, but if you attack both of them will be destroyed. I guess I expected a little too much from you today big guy."

"How presumptuous of you to presume I would be attacking your Big Star." Gongenzaka smirked. "Battle, and then at this time, Shinobi-AC's effect activates! By halving its original DEF, it can attack directly!"

 **Superheavy Ninja Shinobi-AC: 3200 DEF – 1800 DEF**

"Forgive me Yuzu," Gongenzaka said. "But I'm afraid my monster will be attacking you directly!"

Not a second after Gongenzaka said so, Shinobi-AC launched its new mechanical glove at Yuzu, who jumped over a railing in order to avoid the attack. The duelists, sans Gongenzaka, began running around for Action cards.

Yuzu was the first to grab one, followed up by Sawatari.

"Action Magic, Break Action! I destroy one Action card in a player's hand." Sawatari declared, causing the card Yuzu just grabbed to crumble into dust.

Yuzu grimaced at her luck, and braced herself as the mechanical glove rocketed towards her.

"Action Magic!" Yuya cried at as he snagged a card. "Code of Chivalry! For the rest of the turn, no player takes damage from direct attacks!"

A blue barrier appeared around Yuzu and protected her from Shinobi-AC's assault.

"You're welcome for the save milady." Yuya courteously said with a bow.

"Milady'? That sounds like something Yuto would say." Yuzu pointed out, trying not to laugh.

"Well it's very fitting. I mean it is the job of the knight in shining armor to rescue his damsel in…." Yuya began, only to freeze once he saw Yuzu's downright murderous expression.

"Go on Yuya." Yuzu whispered threateningly. "A damsel in what?"

"A damsel…." Yuya gulped, "…. in danger who can totally take care of herself. Hahahaa!" He laughed nervously.

"That's what I thought."

" _I can't believe he almost just said that_." Aria whispered to Elegy.

" _It could have been worse_." The fairy dressed in purple whispered to her fellow Melodious. " _Remember what happened to Yuri when he called Yuzu a damsel in distress_?"

" _Good point._ " Aria acknowledged.

"Since no player can take damage from direct attacks this turn, I am forced to end my turn, while Shinobi-AC's DEF returns to normal." Gongenzaka said as his monster returned to his side.

 **Superheavy Ninja Shinobi-AC: 1800 DEF – 3200 DEF**

"Now, Ladies and Gentlemen, it's finally turn for the Sakaki Circus to make its opening move!" Yuya proudly proclaimed with both arms outstretched. "Ore no turn, Draw!"

"Wait just a moment!" Sawatari declared loudly. "Before you do anything else, during your Standby Phase, I activate my Trap, Abyss Actors Back Stage! Due to its effect, I can add two different Abyss Actor Pendulum monsters from my Deck to my Extra Deck. I add Level Four Sassy Rookie and Level One Loyal Sidekick!"

"Loyal Sidekick?" Gongenzaka parroted. "I don't recall that one ever being in your Deck."

"Sorry big guy, no spoilers at the moment. Right now it's my rival's turn to entertain, even if it won't be as good as the great Shin Sawatari's performance that is yet to come."

" _How long before that starts getting annoying_?" Big Star asked his fellow monsters.

" _Starts_?" Shinobi-AC countered, implying that there was a time when Sawatari's titles weren't grating.

"To start my performance, I activate the Spell Dual-Colored Eyes." Yuya began. "I add Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon from my Deck to my Extra Deck and draw two cards."

"See right there! Again you guys are copying me!" Sawatari freaked out.

" _What a Diva._ " Shinobi-AC whispered while rolling his eyes.

" _Oh no,_ we're _the Diva's_. He _is an 'Actor.'_ " Elegy quipped, causing her fellow monsters to start snickering.

"Why do I get the feeling your monsters are laughing at me?" Sawatari asked aloud.

"I summon Entermate Skullcrobat Joker!" Yuya continued, causing the flamboyantly dressed joker to appear on his field.

 **Entermate Skullcrobat Joker:** _ **1800 ATK**_ **/ 100 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 8/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"When Joker is Normal Summoned, his effect allows me to add one Entermate, Odd-Eyes or Pendulum Magician monster from my Deck to my hand. I add Entermate Uni!" Yuya explained as Joker reached into his hat and pulled out a card before tossing it to his master.

"I now, with the Scale 5 Wisdom-Eye Magician and Scale 8 Timegazer Magician, set the Pendulum Scale!" The red-and-green haired duelist bellowed as he slammed the two cards onto the blade of his Duel Disk, the word 'PENDULUM' appearing in rainbow-lettering.

Two columns of light appeared beside Yuya. To his left was a hooded monster wearing a mask and carrying a mace with a prayer wheel attached via a long chain. To his right was one of his first and most well-known Pendulum monsters, a magician in black robes with short red hair sticking out from under the cap atop his head. His robes were decorated with gold lines while a cog-like wheel was attached to his wrist. Underneath each monster was a '5' and '8' respectively.

"Wisdom-Eye no Pendulum Kouka! Since I have an Entermate or Magician in my other Pendulum Zone, I can destroy this card and replace it with a different Magician. I destroy Wisdom-Eye, and place Scale 1 Stargazer Magician in my other Pendulum Zone! Wisdom's Foresight"

Wisdom-Eye vanished from the column of light, and in his stead was a humanoid monster in white robes with long flowing blonde hair, who was carrying a staff with a circular guard. He floated above a glowing '1'.

" _Hello my other half."_ Timegazer sardonically greeted.

" _Hello Timegazer. I do hope this duel hasn't taken away from your precious nap time."_ The magician in white sarcastically clapped. _"Anyway, what do you think Yuya will do next?"_

" _I predict he will Pendulum Summon Odd-Eyes and Wisdom-Eye from the Extra Deck, as well as Uni and Corn from his hand."_ Timegazer stated as Yuya began to Pendulum Summon, the spectral image of the Pendulum swinging in between the columns containing the two mages. _"After which, he'll use Corn's effect to search Odd-Eyes Unicorn and follow that up with a Fusion Summon."_

"Pendulum Shoukan!" Yuya shouted as the portal opened up between his two Magicians and four orbs of colored light descend. "Appear, my monsters! From my hand, Entermates Uni and Corn, and reappear from my Extra Deck, Wisdom-Eye Magician!"

Wisdom-Eye appeared on the field, whirling his mace around. The young mage was accompanied by two young ladies, both wearing a performers outfit that matched their hair colors, yellow and blue respectively. Sticking out from under their locks of hair was a single unicorn horn.

 **Wisdom-Eye Magician:** _ **1500 ATK**_ **/ 1500 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 5/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Entermate Uni:** _ **800 ATK**_ **/ 1500 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

 **Entermate Corn:** _ **600 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 3/ Beast-Warrior/ Effect**

"Awareyo! Wondrous and beautiful dichromatic eyes! Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!" Yuya chanted as his signature red dragon descended onto the field, giving a majestic howl.

 **Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect**

Stargazer scowled. " _This is why no one gambles against you. You use your powers of foresight to get ahead_."

" _It's not my fault that when our original form was split by accident, Chronograph Magician gave up some of his power to keep our complete power from being lost_." Timegazer shrugged as Odd-Eyes overhead the conversation.

" _Chronograph Magician…."_ The red dragon muttered to himself. _"If Biograph Magician has returned after all these years, than what has happened to you during the twenty five year gap?"_

Unaware of his partner's distress, Yuya and company continued on with the duel.

"You know Yuya," Sawatari said, trying to conceal the massive grin on his face as he gestured towards Uni and Corn. "Part of me wants to ask, have you ever made Yuzu dress up in that kind of outfit?"

"EH!" Yuya exclaimed as he nearly lost his footing. "Wha-why would you even think I'd want her to dress up like that?!" He frantically denied, though the red on his face claimed otherwise.

" _Ugh, men_." Elegy rolled her eyes. _"They all want women to dress up in some ridiculous outfit."_

" _Don't be so quick to judge,"_ Uni with a smile. _"These outfits are surprisingly comfy."_

" _I agree, these outfits are both comfortable and entertaining."_ Corn added before she and her sister began waving happily towards the audience.

"It seems my lovely assistants are ready to continue on with our show today." Yuya stated as he began using his Entertainer persona. "Let me reward their enthusiasm by granting their wish and activing Corn's effect! By switching her and Uni to Defense Position, I can add one Pendulum monster from my Deck to my hand. I add Entermate Odd-Eyes Unicorn."

"Unicorn. Uni and Corn. Oh, I just got that." Sawatari muttered as he realized the play on words regarding the two monsters.

"Now everyone, put your hands together as these marvelous performers work together to bring out two new members of our cast." Yuya proclaimed as he grabbed a card from his hand. "I activate the Spell card, Entertainment Fusion, and Fusion Summon an Entermate monster by using monsters I control and in my hand as Fusion Material, or by shuffling the Material monsters from my Graveyard into my Deck!"

A trio of spotlights focused on Uni, Corn, and a green unicorn with a pink mane and a set of dual colored eyes. "I fuse together Entermate Uni, Entermate Corn, and Entermate Odd-Eyes Unicorn together!" Yuya declared as his monsters joined hand and hoof before swirling together in a spiral of red, blue and yellow.

"Lovely Performer! Beautiful Entertainer! Magical beast with duel colored eyes! Become one and let your marvelous sound ring out for all to hear! Yuugo Shoukan! Come forth, Level 7! Enchanting composer writing melodies of wonder and beauty! Entermate Harmony Symflorist!"

A harmonious gestalt of voices rang out, and a beautiful young woman with crystal blue eyes emerged from the portal. Her wavy pink hair was tied up in a pony-tail that went down to her shoulders, decorated by a crown of roses. Two pink markings were painted on her cheeks, a smiley face and a curly eighth-note. She wore a white and pink chamber ball dress with gold lace on her sleeves and a red sash patterned with golden lines of music notes wrapped around her waist. On her feet were a pair purple heels, decorated by pink bows with a large blue crystal up the front. Waving around a conductor's baton embedded with sparkling crystals, the young composer released an angelic hymn as she winked at the audience.

 **Entermate Harmony Symflorist:** _ **2700 ATK**_ **/ 1800 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 7/ P.S. 9/ Fairy/ Fusion/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Yuya-oniichan has a pretty monster too!" Ayu remarked in awe of the singing monster.

"We welcome this new Maestra in homage to you of course, Yuzu." Yuya said as he held his hand out towards the pink haired girl, causing her to blush.

"Aww… you created a card based on me?"

"Possessive much…." Sawatari remarked under his breath.

"Thanks to the effects of Entertainment Fusion, Harmony Symflorist gains 300 ATK per monster used in her Fusion Summon. Since there were three, our lovely diva gains an additional 900 ATK!"

Harmony Symflorist briefly become covered in a rainbow aura as the spirits of Uni, Corn and Unicorn appeared and danced merrily around her.

 **Entermate Harmony Symflorist: 2700 ATK + (300 X 3) = 3600 ATK**

"3600 ATK!" Futoshi cried.

"Now it's stronger than Sawatari's Big Star!" Tatsuya remarked.

"Before we continue, I believe there is someone missing from our show. But who is it?" Yuya pantomimed, stroking his chin before snapping his fingers. "That's right! I overlay Level Four Skullcrobat Joker and Wisdom-Eye Magician!"

Both monsters transformed into orbs of purple and yellow energy, dancing in the air as the swirling galaxy portal opened up in front of Yuya. The two energies descended into the portal, causing a column of lightning to erupt while Yuya chanted.

"Born in the endless cycle of death and rebirth, raise your eternal blade from the void and awaken your power! Xyz Shoukan! Appear, Rank Four! Magical Swordsman of Eternity! Reincarnation Paladin!"

Rising up from the portal was a warrior that bared some resemblance to Enlightenment Paladin, but with a pitch black set of armored robes in contrast to Enlightenment's pale white. Reincarnation Paladin's silver hair was tied into a braided ponytail that went down to his lower back, and with both of his hands he wielded a pair of scimitars with masterful skill and precision while a pair of purple orbs rotated around him like planets orbiting around the sun.

 **Reincarnation Paladin:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 4/ OVU: 2/ Spellcaster/ Xyz/ Effect**

"Since Reincarnation Paladin was Xyz Summoned using a Magician as Material, he allows me to re-add a Monster from my Graveyard to my hand. I add Entermate Odd-Eyes Unicorn back to my hand."

"So this time it's a new Paladin." Gongenzaka remarked as the light from Yuya's Xyz Summon disappeared. "Your Deck never seizes to stop spilling out so many different monsters."

"What can I say, we Entertainment Duelists have to keep our routines fresh and interesting." Yuya replied, "And what better way to do that then by constantly evolving and bringing new cast mates into our troupes."

"You better remember that Yuya." Sawatari whispered smugly, "Because next Turn those words will be back with a vengeance."

"Battle! Harmony Symflorist attacks Big Star!" Yuya ordered as his monster began to wave her baton around. "And now, Symflorist's effect activates! When she battles against a Special Summoned monster, she gains ATK equal to the combined ATK of all other Pendulum Monsters I control! Harmonic Chorus!

 **Entermate Harmony Symflorist: 3600 ATK + 2500 ATK = 6100 ATK**

"6-6100 ATK!" Sawatari gasped.

"And with Stargazer and Timegazer's Pendulum Effects," Gongenzaka analyzed, "Sawatari cannot use an Action Card to stop the attack."

"Then once Yuya attacks directly with one of his other two monsters, Sawatari'll lose." Yuzu added.

"Ikay, Floral Symphony!" Yuya cried as a flower blossomed from the top of Symflorist's baton before firing a blast of light, the sound of an entire orchestra echoing in the background. The attack reached Big Star, causing an explosion of flower petals on impact.

" _Well,"_ Stargazer remarked, not surprised that Sawatari was the first to fall. " _That takes care of the arrogant prick._ "

" _Wait for it._ " Timegazer stated, trying to conceal the smug look on his face.

The petals settled down, revealing, much to everyone's shock, Sawatari with his Life Points intact, Big Star standing beside him. "That's too bad for you Yuya. Abyss Actor Grand Theatre protects my Abyss Actors from being destroyed by battle or card effect once per turn, and it also negates the first battle damage with each of those monsters. Since this was a Continuous effect that activated when I first played the card, Stargazer Magician's Pendulum effect could do nothing to stop it."

Yuya was a bit surprised, but shook it off nonetheless. "Well played Sawatari."

" _Shin_ Sawatari." The blonde emphasized, much to the annoyance of everyone else.

"I end my Battle Phase, and Harmony Symflorist's effect ends as well. To end the first part of our performance, I set one card and end my turn." Yuya stated quickly.

 **Entermate Harmony Symflorist: 6100 ATK – 3600 ATK**

"At last, the spotlight returns to me!" Sawatari boasted proudly as the field transformed back into his Theatre. "Ore no turn, Draw! Since we've reached my Standby Phase, the ATK boost from Dynamic Entry wears off. Meaning that our star no longer shines as bright as he once did.

 **Abyss Actor – Big Star: 3200 ATK – 2500 ATK**

"And now I use another effect of Grand Theatre!" Sawatari shouted as the Abyss Actor marking on the curtains behind him disappeared. "By removing a certain number of Abyss Counters from this card, I can add an Abyss Actor Pendulum Monster from my Extra Deck to my hand, so long as it's Level is equal to the number of counters removed."

 **Abyss Actor Grand Theater: 0 Abyss counters**

"I remove one counter in order to add one of the monsters I added to my Extra Deck beforehand, Abyss Actor – Loyal Sidekick, to my hand before Normal Summoning it!"

A shadowy figure leaped onto the stage, spotlights immediately turning towards it. In the center of their light was a short, goofy looking man with blue skin, wearing the clothes of a medieval commoner with a cloak draping off his shoulders. He carried a large broadsword with both hands, unable to lift it with just one.

 **Abyss Actor – Loyal Sidekick:** _ **500 ATK**_ **/ 300 DEF/ DARK/ Level 1/ P.S. 5/ Fiend/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect**

All eyes, human and monster, widened in shock as the Duelists, spectators and monsters noticed one very important detail about Sawatari's new monster.

"IT'S A TUNER!?" Everyone yelled in shock.

"That's right!" Sawatari grinned. "And since our good friend Gongenzaka has already shown us how to properly use a Tuner, bare witness as I, the great Shin Sawatari Shingo, make his Synchro Summoning debut!"

Sawatari snapped his fingers as the spotlights focused on his two monsters. "I Tune Level Seven Big Star with Level One Loyal Sidekick!"

The spotlights turned their attention to Loyal Sidekick as he wobbled towards Big Star before getting down on one knee and offering the star his sword. Accepting the weapon, Big Star held the blade high as Loyal Sidekick transformed into a single ring that began rotating around him while Sawatari's chanting in the background set the mood for the debut of a new cast member.

"Magnificent artist famed for a thousand roles! Appear on this stage and dazzle the masses with your legendary talent!"

"Synchro Shoukan!" Sawatari cackled as a pillar of light erupted behind him. "To the center of the spotlight, Level 8! Abyss Actor – Legendary Star!"

The pillar of light dispersed as the shadow of a large figure emerged from within. Spotlights once again turning their attention to the new monster, they revealed a man who resembled Big Star, but much grander. His outfit had turned into crystal white robes decorated with black and gold star accessories, and he wore a mask with the Abyss Actors' symbol on it. In his right and left hands he held a feather pen and what appeared to be headshots of himself respectively.

 **Abyss Actor – Legendary Star:** _ **3000 + (100 X 8) = 3800**_ **/ 2200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ Fiend/ Synchro/ Effect**

No one spoke a word, all were stunned by Sawatari's display of Synchro Summoning. The blonde was somewhat offended by this though.

A burst of heavy laughter broke the silence, at least among the monsters. _"You guys should see your faces! HAHAHAHA! Oh this is rich!"_ Timegazer snorted.

" _You_ KNEW _he was going to Synchro Summon?"_ Stargazer barked. " _Then why didn't you say something!?"_

" _He said no spoilers."_ The brown haired magician replied, unable to keep a straight face as he continued laughing.

Stargazer, unamused, rolled his eyes in annoyance. _"I hate you. You know that right?"_

"Well…" Yuya spoke, being the first human to say something. "That explains what you meant before about what I said coming back with a vengeance. Did not see that coming."

Sawatari smiled lightly. "You said it yourself Yuya, gotta expand the ensemble and keep duelists and audiences alike on their toes."

"So," Yuzu spoke up, "You gonna tell us why you picked up Synchro Summoning or…."

"Ah yes of course. It's a thrilling and exciting tail of trial and error as I spent hours learning how to…"

"Short version please, you are on a time limit here." Gongenzaka interrupted, causing Sawatari to frown.

"Fine." The blonde groaned. "It happened after mine and Yuya's duel last month…..

…..

" _I still don't get why I can't beat him!" Sawatari groaned before taking a sip of his latte. Dennis and Sora sat beside him, attempting to finish their lunch in peace._

" _I can answer that." Sora whispered sarcastically, earning a nudge from Dennis._

" _Sora-chan, don't be rude." The redhead admonished before turning towards Sawatari. "Don't give up Sawatari. One day you'll beat Yuya, and win or lose, that duel was truly entertaining."_

 _Sawatari sighed as he finished his drink. "It's not just that. Truth be told, sometimes I feel like I don't deserve the praise I get."_

" _But you're a fantastic duelist and entertainer just as skilled as Yuya." Dennis cheered._

" _Yeah,_ now _." Sawatari said with a displeased look on his face. "But let's be real, how useful was I during the Academia war? I barley edged out Yuzu in terms of usefulness, and that's not really saying much."_

"Waah-HEY!" An angered Yuzu screeched.

"Please," Sawatari smirked, "No interruptions. I'm soliloquizing here..."

" _People say I helped save the world and all, but I don't feel like I contributed anything important to our side."_

" _Not true," Sora interjected as he dipped a takoyaki skewer in chocolate. "You made a pretty decent meat shield at times."_

" _Geez that makes me feel so much better." Sawatari sarcastically thanked Sora. "What do I do stop feeling like this?"_

" _Pick up another Summoning method!" Sora practically shouted. "It's been two years and you still only have Pendulum Summoning. If you want to stand a chance against duelists like Yuya or Reiji, you gotta start expanding your horizon and learn a new Summoning method or two."_

" _That's not a bad idea Sora-chan," Dennis admitted. "Although you should work on your tact. That was brutally honest."_

" _I find it best not to sugarcoat things." The blue haired duelist replied nonchalantly before taking a sugar packet and spilling the contents onto what was left of his meal._

" _But what should I learn first, and who would teach me?" Sawatari asked, causing Sora to smile smugly._

" _Well for which of the other Summoning methods, you should ask yourself which one really_ SPEAKS _to you, and which seems like the easiest to start off with. Preferably the one that is, at the same time, the strongest," the Fusion user explained, not so subtly trying to tell Sawatari to pick up Fusion._

 _Dennis rolled his eyes, seeing right through his friend's scheme._

" _And as for who would teach you, you can't go to Yuya, since your trying to be better than him. What you have to do is ask one of the most skilled and top-tier duelists you know. Maybe one who you never really realized was that powerful before."_

 _Sawatari, seemingly drawn in by Sora's subliminal messaging, grinned as he realized something. "Of course, it's so obvious. The answer was right in front of me this whole time!"_

" _Glad you understand." Sora triumphantly said before taking a bite out of his overly sweetened food. "Now to start…"he started talking with his mouth full before Sawatari abruptly got up out of his seat and began running._

" _I gotta go talk to Crow, thanks for the idea Sora!" Sawatari shouted as he left the other two Lancers behind._

" _WAH I was talking about me!" Sora yelled, furious that Sawatari didn't fall for his tricks. "Now I have to pay his third of the bill, don't I?_

" _That certainly didn't work out the way you wanted it." Dennis remarked, trying to conceal the amused look on his face._

….

"And like Yuzu with Ruri, I approached Crow about teaching me how to Synchro Summon. And clearly," Sawatari gestured to his new monster as he concluded his tale, "The results speak for themselves."

"I am honestly impressed that you admitted to yourself that you didn't feel like you contributed much to the war effort." Gongenzaka admitted, "It's so, unlike you."

"Hey, I am not as idiotic as you people sometimes make me out to be!" Sawatari growled, "Yes, I do brag about my skills, even when they were practically non-existent at the time, but I'd have to be a total moron to not realize even you were more useful than I was Gongenzaka."

"That is surprisingly mature of you to say Sawatari." The Steadfast duelist smiled at Sawatari's remark.

"Of course, considering you didn't do any damage to Zarc and didn't pick up any wins during the final stretch of the war, that's not really saying much either." Sawatari added.

"And there it is." Gongenzaka sighed, not surprised by that remark.

"Oh, look at the time, the duel needs to continue." Sawatari said before gesturing towards his Synchro monster. "When Legendary Star is Synchro Summoned, I can add an Abyss Actor monster from my Deck to my hand! I add Mellow Madonna. And next I activate the other effect of Legendary Star! Once per turn, I can tribute up to three Abyss Actor cards I control in order to return that many cards on the field to the hand! And since this effect doesn't target Yuzu, it means Aria's effect won't save your monsters!"

Yuzu clicked her tongue in annoyance, displeased that Sawatari had found a way around her protection lock.

"I tribute Dynamic Entry and Stage Technician in order to return both Yuzu's Elegy the Melodious Diva and Gongenzaka's Soul Buster Gauntlet to their hands! Ikay, Magnificent Stardom!"

The spotlights shining on Legendary Star glowed brighter, light reflecting off of the star decorations and making the superstar look like an actual supernova. With a roar as mighty as a lion's, Legendary Star seemed to release an even brighter light, pushing back Sawatari's other two cards while sending Elegy and Gongenzaka's equip cards back to their hands.

"Of course, since Dynamic Entry left the stage, Legendary Star loses the ATK boost." Sawatari frowned, before turning that frown into a grin. "But on the plus side, I can add an Abyss Script card from my Deck or Graveyard to my hand since it did so. And as a bonus, Gongenzaka's robo-ninja over there also gets weaker!"

 **Abyss Actor – Legendary Star: 3800 – 800 = 3000 ATK**

 **Superheavy Ninja Shinobi-AC: 3200 – 400 = 2800 DEF**

"Now I think I'll rebuild my Scales using Scale 3 Abyss Actor – Extras!" Sawatari continued as a trio of fedora wearing goblins appeared in a column of light over to the side, hovering above the number '3'.

Smiling, Sawatari noticed a few ropes to this side. Running over, he grabbed a low hanging rope before swinging across the stage and landing right on top of an Action card.

"Perfect," he whispered to himself before activating the card. "Action Magic, Mass Extinction! All monsters on the field are destroyed!"

"But won't that destroy his own monster too?" Futoshi asked from the sidelines.

"No, his Field Spell protects his monsters from being destroyed by any player's card effects once per turn." Tatsuya explained, "And that mean's everyone will be defenseless once Sawatari summons more monsters!"

"I activate the effect of Superheavy Samurai Soul Heaven Armor!" Gongenzaka countered, "By sending this card from my hand to the Graveyard, I negate the destruction of all monsters I control!"

"Action Magic, Mirror Barrier!" Yuya called out, slamming an Action Card onto his Duel Disk. "I target Reincarnation Paladin and make it so that it cannot be destroyed by card effects!"

"But your other monsters will be destroyed, as well as Yuzu's Aria!" Sawatari countered as a dark twister of flames and water appeared, ripping up pieces of the stage. "Take this!"

The twister exploded, sending shrapnel all around the theater and forcing the duelists to take cover. While Reincarnation Paladin and Legendary became surrounded by a reflective barrier, Shinobi-AC protected by a gold and white mechanical chest plate that deflected the projectiles, the remaining three monsters weren't so lucky, and were destroyed in a burst of energy.

"Unfortunately for me," Sawatari sighed, "Every player who had a monster destroyed draws a card for each monster they lost. While Gongenzaka and I cannot, you both lost monsters, meaning you draw two and one card respectively."

"That's an awfully generous effect for a nuking card." Yuzu replied as she and Yuya drew.

"Hey I don't design these cards." Sawatari said, throwing his hands up, "Now I'll take the Abyss Script – Heavenly Evil Spirit to my hand off of the effect of Dynamic Entry and-"

"Hold that thought Sawatari!" Yuya declared, cutting off his opponent's move. "Since I monster I control was destroyed, I can activate the effect of Reincarnation Paladin! By detaching an Overlay Unit, Reincarnation Paladin allows me to Special Summon a monster from my Deck whose Attribute, Type and Level are the same as the destroyed monster!"

Reincarnation Paladin absorbed an orb of light into one of his scimitars, before holding the two together and conjuring up a Bhavackra wheel that opened up, a pair of glowing eyes within.

"Awareyo! Eerie and beautiful dichromatic eyes! Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon!" Yuya bellowed as a monster materialized out of Reincarnation Paladin's wheel. It was a dragon similar in shape to Odd-Eyes Pendulum dragon, colored blue with grey, skeletal armor. Much like its counterpart, Phantom Dragon held a blue orb in its chest armor and on its forehead, with a red and green orb on its shoulder armor. Howling like a wolf in the night, the ominous dragon stomped its foot on the ground before locking the field in the gaze of his red and green eyes.

 **Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon: 2500 ATK/** _ **2000 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"It's a new version of Odd-Eyes!" Ayu cried out.

"But's it's kind of creepy when you compare it to the original." Futoshi remarked, somewhat frightened by the bone-like armor the dragon wore.

"As I was saying," Sawatari said through gritted teeth, "I activate Heavenly Evil Spirit. So now when an Abyss Actor monster battles this turn, all of your monsters will have their ATK become equal to their DEF!"

"But," the blonde smirked, "With now with that out of the way, I can do this! Pendulum Shoukan!" He declared as a pink portal opened up between the columns of light. "Appear again from the Extra Deck, Big Star! And alongside you, Sassy Rookie and Mellow Madonna!"

Big Star reappeared on stage, joined by a deformed looking clown with blue overalls and a rather lovely looking woman with purple skin, long pink hair with a yellow bang covering her right eye, and a simple black dress with long sleeves and a slit up the side that exposed her right leg.

 **Abyss Actor – Big Star:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 1800 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 3/ Fiend/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Abyss Actor – Sassy Rookie:** _ **1700 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 2/ Fiend/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna:** _ **1800 ATK**_ **/ 2500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 0/ Fiend/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Since Big Star was Pendulum Summoned, I get to search another Abyss Script, and Grand Theater gains another Abyss counter." Sawatari said as his Deck shuffled itself, a single card popping out afterwards.

 **Abyss Actor Grand Theater: 1 Abyss counter**

"Magic card, Abyss Script – Fantasy Magic!" Sawatari declared, throwing down the card he searched. "I target Big Star and make it so that whenever it battles a monster this turn, that monster is returned to the hand after damage calculation."

A book materialized above Big Star, which the actor grabbed and quickly finished cover-to-cover before magically dressing himself in the robes of a black mage.

"In addition, Mellow Madonna's effect gives herself an extra 100 ATK for each Abyss Script Spell card in my Graveyard. I count three, so she gains 300 more ATK!" Sawatari explained as his female monster flipped her hair to the side, her body covered in a purple glow.

 **Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna: 1800 + (100 X 3) = 2100 ATK**

"This act is getting a little long, so I think it's time we finish this up. Battle! Mellow Madonna attacks Yuzu directly!" Sawatari declared, pointing towards Yuzu.

Taking a deep breath, mellow Madonna began singing a sustained note, which grew louder and louder as it traveled towards Yuzu. The pinkette jumped out of the way, however the note echoed of the walls and traveled right back at her, knocking her onto her back.

 **Yuzu LP: 5000 - 2900**

"Let's have our leading lady give us an encore shall we? Sassy Rookie attacks this time!" Sawatari added, his cartoonish goblin leaping forward and whacking Yuzu in the stomach and knocking her down just as she managed to get back up.

 **Yuzu: LP: 2900 – 1200**

"Yuzu-oneechan's in trouble." Ayu whispered, "Without any monsters, she'll be finished if she takes another attack."

"I think that's enough for now Yuzu. In the meantime, Legendary Star attacks Reincarnation Paladin!" Sawatari continued, his monster flinging an orb of starlight towards Yuya's swordsman. "And due to Heavenly Evil Spirit's effect, your Paladin's ATK becomes equal to its DEF!"

 **Reincarnation Paladin: 2400 – 2000 ATK**

Rollerblades activating, Yuya raced around the theater before finding an Action Card hiding under the corner of one of the various posters that decorated the theater. However just as he grabbed it, Legendary Star's attack overpowered his Paladin, turning the monster to ash in a burst of light.

 **Yuya LP: 4000 – 3000**

"And now, Big Star attacks Shinobi-AC!" Sawatari ordered, continuing his assault.

Big Star leaped forward, spinning around and transforming himself into a tornado of magical fire in the process. "Even though Big Star's ATK is lower than that of Shinobi-AC's DEF, the effect of Fantasy Magic will return him to the Extra Deck after this battle is over!"

Gongenzaka let out a triumphant smile. "Just like me, my monsters won't be moving either!"

Shinobi-AC raised its staff and swatted Big Star away, the fire that had surrounded the goblin actor extinguishing as the image of Heaven Armor reappeared.

 **Sawatari LP: 4500 – 4200**

"Since I used the effect of Heaven Armor, my Superheavy Samurai cards cannot be removed from the field by card effect for the remainder of this turn." Gongenzaka explained, "In other words your gamble failed you."

"Tsk. Well played big guy," Sawatari smirked. "It seems I'm not the only one who's been improving his Deck. I'll conclude Act Two of our performance and end my-"

"Trap activate, En Grave!" Yuzu proclaimed, cutting off Sawatari as he finished up his turn. "I send up to five Melodious monsters from my Deck or Extra Deck to the Graveyard in order to destroy as many Spell and Trap cards my opponent controls as possible! Oh and by the way, any player who had a card destroyed by this effect has their Life Points halved." She smugly added.

"What!?" Sawatari exclaimed in shock.

"Since En Grave doesn't deal damage, Yuzu-oneechan can hit all three of them at once!" Futoshi proclaimed, "Shivers~~!"

"I send Choral the Melodious Diva from my Deck to the Graveyard in order to destroy all of you guys' Spells and Traps! Consider this payback Sawatari"

'It's _SHIN_ Sawatari!" The blonde roared, determined to make the title stick.

Yuzu's began glowing a bright, multi-colored light, slowly charging up energy before releasing it in a burst of light.

"Trap activate, Pendulum Guard Zone!" Yuya decreed. "All cards in the Pendulum Zones cannot be destroyed by card effects until my next Standby Phase! Meaning my Pendulum cards are safe!"

"Due to the effect of Heaven Armor, Soul Double Horn won't be destroyed either." Gongenzaka reminded.

"And while Yuya's Trap may protect my Pendulum cards, the same cannot be said for my Field Spell." Sawatari sighed, "Which means…."

The burst of energy from En Grave took the shape of a large pink flower, petals fluttering off before impaling Sawatari's Field Spell and Yuya's Pendulum Guard Zone, reverting the arena back into Yuzu's stage.

 **Sawatari LP: 4200/2 – 2100**

 **Yuya LP: 3000/2 – 1500**

"Huh?" Ayu raised an eyebrow at the change in Life Points. "Why did Yuya-oniichan's Life Points change? His cards weren't destroyed."

"Yuya-oniichan activated Pendulum Guard Zone in response to Yuzu-oneechan's En Grave, setting up a Chain." Tatsuya explained. "Since Guard Zone was the last card activated in the Chain, its effects resolved first and prevented Yuya-oniichan's cards from being destroyed. The card is only sent to the Graveyard after the other effects in the Chain resolve. This is where En Grave comes into play. Since Guard Zone was still on the field when its effect resolved, Guard Zone is destroyed before it was sent to the Graveyard, which is why Yuya-oniichan's Life Points were halved."

"Kinda complicated isn't it?" Futoshi asked.

Yuzu stepped forward before placing her fingers on the top of her deck. "Atashi no turn! Draw!"

Looking at her current hand, Yuzu smiled as her mind began formulating a strategy to get out of her current predicament.

" _My Life Points are the lowest out of everyone._ " She recapped in her head. " _Divine Melodious Stage can help me recover at the end of my turn only if I get some monsters on my field. But with this…"_

"During my Standby Phase, the effect of En Vision activates!" Yuzu proclaimed, taking a card out of the Extra Deck compartment on her Duel Disk. "I reveal the Rank Seven Wing Diva the Melodious Choir in my Extra Deck and send Level Seven Shopina the Melodious Maestra and Puccina the Melodious Maestra from my Deck to the Graveyard."

"So that must be Yuzu's new Xyz Monster that she used to defeat her opponent from the Dark Dimension." Gongenzaka mused. "From what she said about its effects, we must be careful."

"Gentlemen, gentlemen, why should we?" Sawatari asked smugly. "She has the lowest Life Points out of all four of us. Even if she makes a comeback, any one of us can take her out before she brings out her Xyz Monster."

"Let's put your little theory to the test, shall we?" Yuzu continued, a bemused smile on her face. "With the Scale 3 Alto the Melodious Songstress, I set the Pendulum Scale!"

Yuzu's red haired fairy, wearing a tight red dress with a blue underside that bloomed outward near the ankles appeared in a column of light, hovering above the number '3'.

"Since Alto is the only card in my Pendulum Zone, I can activate her Pendulum Effect." Yuzu continued, adding a card from her Deck to her hand. "With it, I add Arpeggio the Melodious Diva from my Deck to my hand, and then activate it!"

Another column of ethereal blue light appeared to Yuzu's side, containing her black and violet dress wearing fairy, with tri-colored hair that resembled a blooming flower and a set of clear shimmering piano wings. Underneath her was a glowing '7'.

"Arpeggio no Pendulum Kouka! I target two cards in my Pendulum Zone in order to increase the Scale of the first target and decrease the Scale of the other by up to three! I change Alto's Scale to One while raising Arpeggio's own Scale to Eight! Do it, Arpeggio!"

Moving her piano wings closer to herself, Arpeggio moved her fingers across the keys, playing a short tune that transformed the numbers underneath her and Alto to '8' and '1' respectively.

"Now, with the Scale at One and Eight, I can simultaneously summon monsters from Level 2 through 7!" Yuzu announced as a Pendulum, identical to Yuya's but with a pink crystal, began swaying back and forth between the columns of light.

"Melody of life, embody the essence of harmony. Create a new miracle under the arc of light and let your song dispel the darkness! Pendulum Shoukan! Reappear, En Angel – Hana! Elegy the Melodious Diva, as well as Orchestra the Melodious Diva!"

Above her head, a pink portal opened up before a stream of red light, a stream of yellow light and a third stream of blue light descend from the portal before landing on the ground, revealing the monsters within. Hana and Elegy were joined by a fairy wearing a puffy dress, colored the same crystal white as her hair. Her eyes were a bright yellow, much like the diamonds that decorated both her dress and white gloves. On her back, a pair of golden wings shaped like curled French Horns flapped through the air like cherub wings, her dress billowing out from under hear in the meanwhile.

 **En Angel – Hana/** _ **1000 ATK**_ **/ 1500 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 8/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Elegy the Melodious Diva:** _ **2000 ATK**_ **/ 1200 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 5/ Fairy/ Effect**

 **Orchestra the Melodious Diva:** _ **1000 ATK**_ **/ 2500 DEF/ LIGHT/ level 4/ Fairy/ Effect**

"Two Level Fours." Yuya muttered, recognizing the situation from years of experience.

"Next," Yuzu continued, stretching her hand towards her monsters, "I Overlay my Level Four Orchestra with my Level Four Hana in order to Xyz Summon!"

Taking each other's hands, Orchestra and Hana both transformed into streams of golden light before draining into the center of an Xyz Portal as Yuzu began a summoning chant.

"Beautiful fairy who composes songs of the heart, raise your baton and touch the souls of all with your supreme genius! Xyz Shoukan! To the stage now! The unrivaled artist! Rank 4! Vivaldina the Melodious Maestra!"

In an explosion of light, Vivaldina twirled onto the field in her black dress, pony tails held up by bass-cleft hair clips whipping around her face as she raised her baton before opening her eyes, smiling with utmost confidence.

 **Vivaldina the Melodious Maestra:** _ **1800 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ LIGHT/ OVU 2/ Rank 4/ Fairy/ Xyz/ Effect**

"It's here!" Futoshi exclaimed, "Yuzu-oneechan's Xyz Monster."

"Since Orchestra was used as Xyz Material and Hana as Extra Deck Material, there effects are both applied! Furthermore, I chain the effect of Divine Melodious Stage to Vivaldina's Xyz Summon!" Yuzu plucked a card from her deck and added it to her hand. "I add Sonata the Melodious Diva to my hand! And now everyone, let's give it up for the effects of Hana and Orchestra! Thanks to these lovely angels of Entertainment, Vivaldina gains these three effects!"

"First!" Yuzu declared, holding up her pointer finger. "Because of Hana, so long as Vivaldina is on my Field, my Special Summons cannot be negated. Second, Vivaldina protects my Special Summoned monsters from being targeted or destroyed by my opponent's card effects. And third, because of Orchestra, my opponent's cannot activate Spell or Trap cards until the end of this turn!"

"WHAT!" Yuya and Sawatari screamed in unison, the Action Card in Yuya's had becoming covered in a rainbow glow.

"Dang it." Yuya whispered, "She's definitely trying to recover after her stall plan failed."

"Now, since I control a Melodious monster, I can Special Summon Sonata the Melodious Diva from my hand via her effect!" Yuzu continued, momentum growing with each passing second as her slim green-haired fairy pirouetted onto the field.

 **Sonata the Melodious Diva:** _ **1200 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 3/ Fairy/ Effect**

"Next, I activate Vivaldina's effect! I detach an Overlay Unit, in this case Hana, in order to draw a card! Draw!" Yuzu declared, tearing off a card from off of the top of her Deck. Smiling, Yuzu revealed the card.

"Since the card was a Level Four or lower Melodious monster, Vivaldina's second effect allows me to Special Summon it! Appear, Dirge the Melodious Songstress!"

Yuzu's monsters clapped their hands as Vivaldina opened up the palm of her hand and threw a tiny paper bomb into the air that exploded in a blast of colorful confetti and music. The smoke cleared to reveal a sorrowful looking fairy that resembled an angel with her enormous black raven wings. Dirge wore a black dress, most of her face obscured by a black veil, while a golden necklace with a harp hanging on the end laid at the base of her neck. Singing a song filled with lament, Dirge flapped her wings before placing her palms together as if saying a prayer.

 **Dirge the Melodious Songstress:** _ **800 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Fairy/ Effect**

"Dirge's effect activates upon being Special Summoned!" Yuzu continued, "I can send one Melodious monster from my Deck to my Graveyard! I send Motzarta the Melodious Maestra!"

Depositing her Ace Monster into the Graveyard, Yuzu smiled even wider as she took the card she had drawn for her turn before holding it up for all to see.

"Magic card, Harmonic Fusion! This card allows me to Fusion Summon one Melodious monster from my Extra Deck by shuffling the Materials from my Graveyard into my Deck. Everyone," she invited, "come forth to the center of the stage!"

The ghostly spirits of Haydina, Motzarta, Hana, Aria and Choral gathered to the center of the platform, smiling and waving at the spectators as the audience cheered.

"I fuse En Angel – Hana, Motzarta and Haydina the Melodious Maestras together with Aria and Choral the Melodious Divas and Fusion Summon!"

The quintet of fairies joined hands as the ascended to the center of a Fusion Portal before swirling together in a vortex of pink, blue, red, yellow and purple. Closing her eyes, Yuzu began her summoning chant.

"Heartfelt melody that stirs the blooming flowers! Supreme genius! Prolific master! Echoing melodious voice! Harmonic chorus! By the guidance of the baton, assemble your power! Yuugo Shoukan! Now on stage, the song of Passion! Level 7, Bloom Prima the Melodious Diva!"

In a swirl of flower petals, Yuzu's Fusion Monster pirouetted onto the stage. Her elegant yellow dress resembled an upside-down flower in bloom, a pair of blue and white flowers blooming over her back. Twirling in the air, she sang several notes before landing in the center of Yuzu's formation of monsters, a bright smile plastered on her face.

 **Bloom Prima the Melodious Choir:** _ **1900 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 7/ Fairy/ Fusion/ Effect**

"The effects of all my monsters are applied! Sonata's effect increases the ATK of all my Fairy monsters by 500, Elegy gives them 300 ATK, Vivaldina, with a single Overlay unit further increase their ATK by 200! Bloom Prima, by her own effect, gains 300 ATK for each monster used in her Fusion Summon, and that boost is doubled since Harmonic Fusion gives the summoned monster the exact same boost!"

The entire stage filled up with light as the fairy orchestra began playing their instruments in tune with the songs of Yuzu's monsters as they surged with power.

 **Elegy the Melodious Diva: 2000 + 500 + 300 + 200 = 3000 ATK**

 **Sonata the Melodious Diva: 1200 + 500 + 300 + 200 = 2200 ATK**

 **Dirge the Melodious Diva: 800 + 500 + 300 + 200 = 1800 ATK**

 **Vivaldina the Melodious Maestra: 1800 + 500 + 300 + 200 = 2800 ATK**

 **Bloom Prima the Melodious Maestra: 1900 + 500 + 300 + 200 + (300 X 5) + (300 X 5) = 5900 ATK**

Yuya and Sawatari visibly sweat dropped, even Gongenzaka was visibly concerned. At this rate Yuzu could win the duel right here and now without waiting for En Vision's effect to go through.

"The effect of Bloom Prima allows her to attack twice per turn, meaning with my current field, I can perform a total of six attacks!"

"Incredible! Burn up, Yuzu!" Shuzo shouted over the loud speak, energized by his daughter's powerful combos.

"The first attack! Bloom Prima, attack Superheavy Ninja Shinobi-AC! Blooming Chorus!" Yuzu decreed as the flowers atop Bloom Prima's shoulders blossomed even wider before releasing a powerful wave of sound towards the sitting ninja.

"Superheavy Samurai Soul Vanquish Armor no Kouka!" Gongenzaka countered, activating another hand Trap. "Orchestra's effect may have prevented the activation of Spells or Traps, but it's a good thing I don't use them and that the effect doesn't stop Monster effects! During my opponent's Battle Phase, if I have no Spell or Traps in my Graveyard, I can discard this card in order to prevent the destruction of all my Superheavy monsters by battle this turn. In addition, every time a Superheavy monster I target for an attack, I can draw a card, so thank you Yuzu."

A suit of blue samurai armor appeared in front of Shinobi-AC, blocking Bloom Prima's attack. Gongenzaka smirked as he draw a card afterwards.

"So, my Deck is telling me it's time for that." The steadfast duelist whispered to himself.

"Since that didn't work out as planned, let's try again." Yuzu said, stretching her hand towards Sawatari's field. "Bloom Prima, attack Abyss Actor – Legendary Star!"

'That won't be happening either!" Gongenzaka roared, "I activate the effect of Vanquish Armor in my Graveyard! Since a Superheavy monster I control was attacked this turn, I can banish this card in order to make one monster my opponent controls unable to attack for the rest of this turn. Since this effect doesn't target, the effect inherited from Hana cannot stop it."

The spirit of Vanquish Armor rose out of the Graveyard before attaching itself to Bloom Prima, weighing her down and preventing her from singing any further.

"Gongenzaka is really going at it today." Yuya told Sawatari.

"I know, it's six turns in and he's the only one who hasn't taken any damage." The blonde replied, "Nothing we do seems to overcome him."

"Since Bloom Prima can no longer attack, I'll have to go with plan B." Yuzu whispered to herself. "Change of plans ladies! Elegy attack Legendary Star!"

"Not today pinky!" Sawatari retorted, "Don't you know the best actors are able to adapt to the role they have to play! Legendary Star's other effect! Once during any of our turns, I can target one Abyss Actor monster I control or that is face-up in my Extra Deck in order to have my Star gain the effects of that monster for the turn! I choose Sassy Rookie, meaning that Legendary Star cannot be destroyed by battle once per turn. It looks like your mutual destruction gambit there didn't quite work out as you thought-"

"Action Magic, Selection of Miracle!" Yuzu roared from the stage, having grabbed an Action Card while Sawatari was running his mouth off. "I choose the effect that prevents destruction by battle!"

Elegy sang a mournful note, which legendary Star retaliated at by flinging an orb of starlight at. The two attacks collided and canceled each other out at that moment.

Yuzu snarled, her opponents having been able to overcome what she had thrown at them.

"I could finish off Yuya, but there is always the risk that the Trap he played before could have a Graveyard effect. At the very least I can leave his field open for Gongenzaka to finish him off." Yuzu planned.

"Sonata, destroy Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon!" Yuzu ordered, her monster singing a sustained note that destroyed Yuya's dragon in an explosion of sound.

"Yuya-oniichan doesn't have any more monsters left." Tatsuya observed, "Yuzu-oneechan can finish him off now!"

"I end my Battle Phase." Yuzu stated, surprising her opponents. "What? It's my turn, I can stop attacking if I want. Setting two cards facedown. Turn end. Now during my End Phase, Divine Melodious Stage restores my Life Points by 500 for each Melodious monster I control, in this case that's 2500!"

 **Yuzu LP: 1200 – 3700**

"She's recovered most of her Life Points." Yuya muttered, eyes locked on Yuzu's field. "She can't summon Wing Diva unless we destroy one of her other monsters. But unless one of us gets a monster or a card that can attack directly, we'll have no choice but to destroy her monsters in order to damage her."

Gongenzaka slammed his metal-geta onto the stage, a loud echo resounding across the stage as he roared "ORE NO TURN! DRAW!"

"Superheavy Samurai Kotodam-A no kouka! By discarding this card and Soul Buster Gauntlet from my hand, I can in turn excavate the top five cards of my Deck. All Superheavy Samurai monsters among those cards will be added to my hand, and all other cards will be sent to my Graveyard." Gongenzaka explained, "However, for each monster I add to my hand, I take 400 damage."

"And he just restocked his hand." Sawatari commented, knowing that there was no way Gongenzaka wouldn't draw five cards.

Plucking the top five cards off of his Deck, Gongenzaka examined them before revealing all five to his opponents. "All of these cards are monsters, and since Superheavy General Hisu-E and Superheavy General San-5 are always treated as Superheavy Samurai cards, they are added to my hand. However, since I added five cards to my hand, I take 2000 damage."

Gongenzaka grunted as a white aura briefly surrounded him, but the Steadfast duelist did not falter in his iron-clad resolve.

 **Gongenzaka LP: 4000 – 2000**

"And now I, using the Scale 1 Superheavy General Hisu-E and the Scale 8 Superheavy General San-5, set the Pendulum Scale!" Gongenzaka roared as two robotic warriors in shogun armor, one decorated in jade and the other in red coral, appeared in two columns to his sides.

"With this I can simultaneously summon monsters with Levels Two through Seven! Pendulum Shoukan! Iza shutsujin, my monsters! Superheavy Samurai Horaga-E, and also Superheavy Samurai Ashigar-U!"

A pink portal opened up between the two columns of light, two streaks of light colored red and green respectively, descending from within and slamming onto the ground.

One light transformed into a small red robot with a mechanical straw hat, carrying a trumpet. Bringing the instrument up to its mouth, the robotic monster used it to send out a cry of war.

 **Superheavy Samurai Horaga-E: 300 ATK/** _ **600 DEF**_ **/ EARTH/ Level 2/ Machine/ Tuner/ Effect**

The other light faded away to another robotic monster, this one in green armor that made it resemble an ancient Japanese foot soldier. Grabbing an arrow from the quiver on its back, Ashigar-U knocked it against the large bow he carried and looked prepared to fire it at Gonegnzaka's command.

 **Superheavy Samurai Ashigar-U: 400 ATK/** _ **1800 DEF**_ **/ EARTH/ Level 4/ Machine/ Effect**

"Another Tuner," Sawatari remarked, taking note of Gongenzaka's field. "You're planning on bringing out another Synchro Monster, aren't you big guy?"

"Not yet." Gongenzaka replied, "There is still more preparation to be done. Superheavy General Hisu-E no Pendulum Kouka! Once per turn, I can increase the Level of one Superheavy monster I control by One. I target the Level Seven Shinobi-AC and raise its Level to Eight.

 **Superheavy Ninja Shinobi-AC: Level 8**

Closing his eyes, Gongenzaka lowered his head before speaking. "I, the man Gongenzaka, must admit that I too felt as if I could have been of more use during the Academia War. I was the first of the Lancers to be eliminated during the Friendship Cup, I could not do anything during the final fight in the Xyz Dimension, and just as Sawatari said, I was unable to make any major contributions prior to Zarc's revival. Words alone cannot express the displeasure I feel when looking back."

"Wow, between me, Yuzu and now you," Sawatari remarked, "This duel is turning into a real sob fest."

"But," Gongenzaka raised his head, a fierce look of determination in his eyes, "I am not one to wallow in self-pity! Yuzu, Sawatari, just as you both strive to improve from your pasts selves, I, the man Gongenzaka, shall become stronger! Ashigar-U no kouka! Once per turn, I can use this card and other Superheavy Samurai monsters I control, in my hand, or that are equipped to monsters I control as Material… AND FUSION SUMMON!"

"FUSION!" The three other duelists and spectators yelled in unison as Ashigar-U shot an arrow at the floor, opening up a Fusion Portal.

"I fuse Ashigar-U and the Soul Double Horn equipped to Shinobi-AC!" Gongenzaka decreed, the horned pauldrons detaching themselves from his Synchro Monster before entering the portal alongside Ashigar-U. The two samurai became woven together in a spiral of red and blue while their master's chant echoed in the background.

"Steadfast hearts defending this peaceful land! Merge your iron resolve on this fierce battlefield and be forged as the sword of the emperor! Yuugo Shoukan! Iza shutsujin, Level 8! Imperial sword representing valor incarnate, Superheavy Samurai Soul QC-Nagi-0-Tsurugi!"

A streak of light slashed through the portal, rocketing onto the field and kicking up a large amount of dust, leaving Yuya, Yuzu and Sawatari to cough and gag as the dust settled. Once it cleared away, the trio of Entertainment duelists looked towards to see a large broadsword embedded in the stage, with a golden blade decorated with the kanji for 'Valor.' The grip of the sword was carved out of pure jade, a dark green cloth attached to the end. Instead of a handguard where the blade met the hilt, there was a demonic face that resembled an oni.

 **Superheavy Samurai Soul QC-Nagi-0-Tsurugi: 2500 ATK/** _ **3000 DEF**_ **/ EARTH/ Level 8/ Machine/ Fusion/ Effect**

"First Sawatari Synchro summoned and now Gongenzaka does a Fusion Summon." Yuzu remarked in disbelief. "This duel is just full of surprises."

"My preparations are almost complete." Gongenzaka stated before gesturing towards Shinobi-AC and Horaga-E. "I Tune the now Level Eight Superheavy Ninja Shinobi-AC with the Level Two Superheavy Samurai Horaga-E!"

Blowing on his trumpet once more, Horaga-E leaped into Shinobi-AC's arms before the robotic ninja flung him into the air, where the mechanical foot soldier morphed into a pair of green Synchro rings encircling Shinobi-AC as Gongenzaka chanted.

"Raging deity, in unison with the roar of a thousand blades, come forth in a spiraling sandstorm! Synchro Shoukan! Iza shutsujin, Level 10! Superheavy Koujin Susano-O!"

In an explosion of light, Gongenzaka's Ace Monster, an imposing mechanical shogun covered in armor, descended unto the battle field. Sitting cross-legged, Susano-O brandished his naginata before slamming it down and kicking up more dust.

 **Superheavy Koujin Susano-O: 2400 ATK/** _ **3800 DEF**_ **/ Level 10/ Machine/ Synchro/ Effect**

"Woah, this Field Spell of yours is surprisingly dusty Yuzu." Yuya coughed, trying to clear the excess dust from his lungs.

"The effect of Heaven Armor activates from my Graveyard!" Gongenzaka roared, stretching his hand towards a shadowy looking portal. "When a Superheavy Synchro Monster is Special Summoned, I can equip both Heaven Armor and one other Superheavy Samurai Soul monster from my Graveyard to the summoned monster. However, both cards will be banished once they leave the field. Revive and armor your comrade, Heaven Armor! Double Horn!"

The spirits of the mechanical chest plate and horned shoulder armor rose up from the portal before attaching themselves to Susano-O, augmenting the warrior's already intense armor.

"As one final act of preparation, I activate the effect of QC-Nagi-0-Tsurugi." Gongenzaka continued as his sword monster became covered in a green aura. "Once per turn, I can equip this card to another Superheavy Samurai monster I control. I equip QC-Nagi-0-Tsurugi to Susano-O!"

Reaching out an arm, Susano-O grabbed the massive looking blade in his palm before holding it high into the heavens.

"Thanks to the effect of the equipped Double Horn, Susano-O can attack twice." Gongenzaka declared, "And now that everything is ready, Battle! Superheavy Koujin Susano-O, attack Abyss Actor – Legendary Star!"

"Well it looks like our star is reprising a role." Sawatari called back. "I activate Legendary Star's effect and have him copy Sassy Rookie's effect. So it looks like my monster gets to stick around."

"QC-Nagi-0-Tsurugi no kouka!" Gongenzaka countered. "If the equipped monster attacks a monster, then at the start of the Damage Step, that monster is destroyed!"

"NANI!" Sawatari sputtered, noticing Susano-O's sword beginning to glow.

"Ikay! Imperial Reave!" Gongenzaka declared, before Susano-O slashed at Sawatari's Synchro Monster, who let out a long and dramatic gasp before he exploded.

"Next, "Gongenzaka gestured towards Yuzu's field, "Susano-O attacks Sonata the Melodious Diva! Double Kusanagi Sword Slash!"

Rotating its heavily armored body around, Susano-O swung its weapons towards the petite fairy, sending crescent waves of energy towards her as she cowered.

"Action Magic!" Yuzu cried as she snatched a card off the edge of a balcony. "Guard Swap! I target two battling monsters and swap their DEF!"

"QC-Nagi-0-Tsurugi no kouka!" Gongenzaka countered. "Since the monster equipped with QC-Nagi was targeted by a card or effect while I have no Magic or Trap cards in my Graveyard, I can negate the effect and destroy that card."

Yuzu gasped as Susano-O slashed at her card with QC-Nagi, bisecting it as his attack destroyed Sonata and sent Yuzu flying backwards.

 **Yuzu LP: 3700 – 2100**

"Since Sonata is no longer on the field," Yuzu groaned as she got to her feet, "Her effect no longer applies, and all my monsters lose the 500 ATK boost."

 **Bloom Prima the Melodious Choir: 5900 – 500 = 5400 ATK**

 **Elegy the Melodious Diva: 3000 – 500 = 2500 ATK**

 **Vivaldina the Melodious Maestra: 2800 – 500 = 2300 ATK**

 **Dirge the Melodious Songstress: 1800 – 500 = 1300 ATK**

"San-5 no Pendulum Kouka!" Gongenzaka roared, "Because a Superheavy Samurai monster I control destroyed an opponent's monster by battle, I can destroy this card in order to allow that monster to attack again! And this time, Susano-O will be attacking Yuya directly!"

"If this attack hits, it's all over for Yuya-oniichan!" Tatsuya cried out as one of Gongenzaka's Pendulum Monsters destroyed themselves.

"I can't look!" Futoshi exclaimed as he covered his eyes.

"Ikay, Susano-O! Double Kusanagi Sword Slash!"

Raising its weapons once more, Susano-O practically leapt at Yuya before slamming his blades down and kicking up a massive cloud of dust…. as well as nearly bringing down the stage and scattering the fairy orchestra.

" _So it looks Yuya was the first to be eliminated….is what I would say if I didn't expect him to use the Action Card he still had in his hand."_ Stargazer Magician nonchalantly remarked. Timegazer said nothing, he had fallen asleep during Yuzu's turn.

" _Why do I even bother sometimes?"_

Dust from the attack clearing, Yuya was revealed to be completely fine, the image of Damage Vanish beside him.

"Whew, good thing I grabbed that card before. Otherwise I'd be done for." Yuya mused, taking deep breaths. "Sorry to disappoint you guys, but you can't get rid of me that easily."

"So it would seem." Gongenzaka chuckled, enjoying the duel so far. "I end my turn. And because I no longer have another card in my other Pendulum Zone, Hisu-E now self-destructs."

The other shogun warrior disappeared, the two columns of light vanishing with it.

"Saa, the stage is once again mine!" Yuya loudly proclaimed. "Ore no turn! Draw!"

Looking at his hand and reviewing what his opponents controlled, Yuya smiled as his saw a strategy form in his mind.

"You all have made stupendous Turns, pushing me to the brink of defeat!" Yuya proclaimed with a smile. "But, my entertaining counterattack is starting now! With the already set Pendulum Scale, I Pendulum Summon! Reappear, Odd-Eyes Pendulum! Odd-Eyes Phantom! Harmony Symflorist! And from my hand, Entermate Spike Eagle!"

Three beams of light erupted from the Pendulum portal, solidifying into the forms of Yuya's monsters. Harmony Symflorist waved her baton around while both of Yuya's dragons roared loudly. Joining them was a brown-feathered eagle with a white poke-a-dotted blue bowtie and a pair of shades over his eyes, circling above the rest of Yuya's monsters.

 **Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Entermate Harmony Symflorist:** _ **2700 ATK**_ **/ 1800 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 7/ P.S. 9/ Fairy/ Fusion/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Entermate Spike Eagle: 900 ATK/** _ **900 DEF**_ **/ WIND/ Level 2/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"And now I Normal Summon Entermate Odd-Eyes Unicorn!" Yuya continued, bringing back his dual-eyed unicorn.

 **Entermate Odd-Eyes Unicorn:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 600 DEF/ LIGHT/ level 1/ P.S. 8/ Beast/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Five monsters at once." Sawatari murmured. "Now what are you going to do."

"Spike Eagle no kouka! Once per turn I can target one monster I control, that monster gains the ability to inflict piercing damage this turn. I target Harmony Symflorist!"

"And with her ATK gaining effect, Gongenzaka will lose." Yuzu whispered.

"Magic Card!" Yuya declared, throwing down another card, "Yuugo! I fuse together Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon together with Odd-Eyes Unicorn!"

"Another Fusion?" Gongenzaka asked, "And with those materials…."

In a flash of light, another Fusion portal appeared above the stage before both Odd-Eyes and Unicorn ascended to the center, bodies glowing a vibrant red and blue respectively before they started swirling together as Yuya began a summoning chant.

"Magical beast with dual colored eyes, become one with the mysterious dragon to create a new power! Yuugo Shoukan! Come forth! The ferocious dragon with luminous feral eyes! Beast-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!"

Bursting out of the portal with a bestial roar, a savage fur-covered dragon with glowing feral eyes appeared, immense claws scrapping the wooden stage.

 **Beast-Eyes Pendulum Dragon:** _ **3000 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ Dragon/ Fusion/ Effect**

"Battle!" Yuya declared, "Entermate Harmony Symflorist, attack and destroy Susano-O! At this moment, Symflorist gains ATK equal to the combined ATK of all other Pendulum Monsters since she's battling a Special Summoned monster! Harmonic Chorus!"

Waving her baton around, Symflorist became endowed with the power of Phantom Dragon pointing it towards the armored warlord.

 **Entermate Harmony Symflorist: 2700 + 2500 = 5200 ATK**

"Superheavy Samurai Soul Fire Armor no kouka!" Gongenzaka countered, "By discarding this card during my opponent's Battle Phase, I can target one Level Five or higher defense position Superheavy Samurai monster I control. That target cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects for the remainder of this turn! However, each time the effect is applied, that monster loses 800 DEF!"

Stonily, Yuya watched as a flaming suit of armor appeared before Susano-O and blocked the blast from Symflorist's baton.

 **Superheavy Koujin Susano-O: 3800 – 800 = 3000 DEF**

 **Gongenzaka LP: 2000 – 600**

"How many hand traps does Gongenzaka have today?" Yuya muttered before gesturing towards his other Fusion Monster. "Beast-Eyes Pendulum Dragon, attack Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna! Hell Dive Burst!"

Roaring, Beast-Eyes leaped into the air before unleashing a blast of fiery energy from its fanged maw, annihilating Sawatari's monster and throwing him back before he could snatch an Action Card.

 **Sawatari LP: 2100 – 1400**

"Beast-Eyes no kouka!" Yuya continued, "If it destroys a monster by battle, it inflicts damage to my opponent equal to the ATK of the Beast-type monster used in its Fusion Summon!"

Charging forward, Beast-Eyes swiped at Sawatari with his tail, knocking the blonde on his back.

 **Sawatari LP: 1400 – 1300**

"Anyone else just get a serious case of Deja-vu?" A somewhat dazed Sawatari asked, remembering the last time he faced Beast-Eyes in battle.

"Last, but most certainly not least, Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon attacks Elegy the Melodious Diva!" Yuya proclaimed with his fighting spirit burning bright. "Phantom Spiral Flame!"

Phantom Dragon burst into action. Opening its maw, it shot a wave of fire that resembled its counterpart's Spiral Strike Burst attack, but colored greyish blue. In response, Elegy unleashed as sorrowful note, the two attacks colliding in the middle. However, Phantom Dragon's blast quickly overpowered Elegy's song, approaching the singer at an alarming rate before overwhelming and destroying her.

 **Yuzu LP: 2100 – 1600**

"With Elegy gone, all your monsters lose the 300 ATK boost!" Yuya announced as Yuzu's remaining fairies all lost a bit of radiance.

 **Bloom Prima the Melodious Choir: 5400 – 300 = 5100 ATK**

 **Vivaldina the Melodious Maestra: 2300 – 300 = 2000 ATK**

 **Dirge the Melodious Songstress: 1300 – 300 = 1000 ATK**

"And now everyone," Yuya proudly exclaimed, "Give it up for Phantom Dragon's monster effect! While the original Odd-Eyes could deal double damage against Level Five or higher monsters, this new ally has a different effect! During the turn he is Pendulum Summoned and has inflicted battle damage, I can inflict damage to my opponent equal to the combined ATK of the monsters in my Pendulum Zones!"

"So how much damage are we talking about?" Futoshi asked in confusion. "I've kinda lost track of everything here…"

"Both Stargazer Magician and Timegazer Magician's ATK is 1200, the sum of which is 2400." Tatsuya calculated.

"If Yuzu-oneechan takes this hit, she'll lose!" Ayu cried out with evident worry.

" _Hey, wake up!_ " Stargazer called out to Timegazer, " _We have work to do!_ "

" _Yeah yeah, I know._ " Timegazer dismissed before raising its duel-disk like bracelet into the hair while Stargazer raised his own staff into the air, energy travelling from their weapons to the orbs on Phantom Dragon's armor.

"Ikay, Atomic Force!" Yuya ordered as his dragon shot a crimson blast of energy towards Yuzu.

"Trap activate!" She countered, not out of the fight just yet. "Adagio! Since I control a Melodious monster, I halve all effect damage I take this turn!"

Yuzu's Trap sent out a wave of light that cut through Phantom Dragon's blast, but was unable to stop it as it reached Yuzu and knocked her on her back.

 **Yuzu LP: 1600 – 400**

"Nice counter Yuzu." Yuya complimented with a proud smile. "Looks like we might just see your Xyz Monster in action after all. I end my Battle Phase before setting a card face-down and end my turn."

 **Entermate Harmony Symflorist: 5200 – 2500 = 2700 ATK**

" _Just in case my other cards aren't enough, I have you to keep me in this duel._ " Yuya remarked to himself, looking at the last card he had in his hand.

"Ore no turn!" Sawatari stepped forward. "If I don't take out Yuzu this turn, we'll all be in big trouble once Wing Diva hits the field. I have to get a good draw."

"DRAW!" The blonde proclaimed as he ripped the top card off of his Deck. Daring to glance at it, Sawatari began to laugh wildly.

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Sawatari exclaimed, stealing Yuya's catchphrase. "I, the great Shin Sawatari Shingo have dazzled you all many times over the course of this duel. But now, watch as I lead this magnificent performance to a grand climax! I activate the Spell, Abyss Actors Standing Ovation! Due to this card's effect, I draw one card for each Pendulum Summoned Abyss Actor Monster I control. Since I have two such monsters, I draw two."

Looking at the other cards he drew, Sawatari smirked even wider.

"Prefect," he whispered to himself as he took one of the cards and threw it down on his Duel Disk. "Magic card, Monster Reborn! Thanks to this card, our play's true star returns to the spotlight where he belongs. Wave hello to your fans, Legendary Star!"

On cue, Legendary Star reappeared, waving his hands dramatically as the light of the crystal chandelier shined down solely on him, fairy orchestra playing music to accompany his return.

 **Abyss Actor – Legendary Star:** _ **3000 ATK**_ **/ 2200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ Fiend/ Synchro/ Effect**

"And now, Legendary Star's effect! I tribute Big Star, Sassy Rookie and Extras in my Pendulum Zone in order to return the same amount of cards my opponents control to their hand!"

"And since this effect neither destroys nor targets…." Yuzu murmured.

"Our protection effects cannot stop him!" Gongenzaka finished.

Sawatari rolled his eyes. "Now who's the presumptuous one? I have no intention of destroying you guys' cards. Yuya on the other hand will be taking the brute force of Legendary Star's power!"

Stars on his outfit lighting up again, Legendary Star let out a fierce battle cry as a blinding flash emitted from him, forcing all others to cover their eyes. Removing their arms, the other duelists looked up to see Yuya's monsters had vanished, Spike Eagle being the sole exception.

"EH!?" Yuya exclaimed, "Why'd you get rid of my monsters?"

"Well for one thing, you're the most powerful duelist in the room." Sawatari replied, "Plus I'm planning on killing three birds with one stone this turn. Even if I only take out you and Yuzu, Gongenzaka will go down just fine on my next turn."

"Hey!" The samurai cried out in annoyance.

"And as for our star, the he still shines bright, I think it's only fair he shares the spotlight with his entourage." Sawatari smirked before throwing the last card in his hand onto his duel disk.

A monster dressed in a flamboyant cowboy outfit, hat covering his eyes and a strange looking gun in his hand ascended in a column of light next to Sawatari, hovering above the number '2'.

"With the Scale 2 Abyss Actor – Wild Hope and the Scale 8 Abyss Actor – Dandy Bi-Player in my Pendulum Zones, I can now Pendulum Summon monsters with Levels Three through Seven! Pendulum Shoukan! Onto the stage one more time, my monsters!"

For a third time, a portal opened up above Sawatari, streams of light descending onto the ground before transforming into his monsters.

 **Abyss Actor – Big Star:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 1800 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 3/ Fiend/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Abyss Actor – Sassy Rookie:** _ **1700 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 2/ Fiend/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 **Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna:** _ **1800 ATK**_ **/ 2500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 7/ P.S. 0/ Fiend/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Thanks to Big Star's effect, I add one Abyss Script from my Deck to my hand. I add Abyss Script – Plot Twist and activate it! And since there is another Abyss Script in my Graveyard, Mellow Madonna's ATK rises even higher!"

 **Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna: 1800 + (100 X 4) = 2200 ATK**

"Let's finish this do this! Battle!" Sawatari declared. "Sassy Rookie, destroy Yuya's little birdie!"

On command, Sassy Rookie leaped across the stage before whacking Yuya's last monster, destroying it in such a blunt way.

"Alas, Yuya, your time has come." Sawatari pretended to mourn, keeping up the dramatic act. "Big Star, direct attack!" He ordered, his monster lunging towards Yuya prepared to slug him in the gut.

"As if!" Yuya countered. "Trap hatsudo! Impenetrable Attack! I choose between two effects, and I choose the effect that protects me from taking battle damage this turn!"

A semi-transparent barrier appeared around Yuya, catching Big Star off guard and forcing him to stop his attack.

"In that case, Mallow Madonna attacks Bloom Prima!" Sawatari commanded, "And now the effect of Plot Twist activates! When an Abyss Actor monster battles a monster with higher ATK this turn, I can apply one of two effects! I can either make it so my monster cannot be destroyed by battle, or swap the ATK of the two battling monsters! And I choose the second effect!"

 **Abyss Actor – Mallow Madonna: 5100 ATK**

 **Bloom Prima the Melodious Choir: 2400 ATK**

Yuzu watched as her monster's strength faltered while Sawatari's primadonna grew stronger, singing a note that eclipsed the singing voices of her own monsters…..

And smiled.

"I activate the effect of Adagio in my Graveyard! By banishing it and tributing all Melodious monsters I control, I reduce the ATK of all monsters my opponent controls to 0 for the rest of the turn!"

Sawatari gasped as all three of Yuzu's monsters slowly faded away, releasing multi-colored music notes to the sound of a slow melody that halted the movements of all monsters on the field.

 **Abyss Actor – Legendary Star: 3000 ATK - 0 ATK**

 **Abyss Actor – Big Star: 2500 ATK - 0 ATK**

 **Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna: 2200 ATK - 0 ATK**

 **Abyss Actor – Sassy Rookie: 1700 ATK - 0 ATK**

 **Superheavy Koujin Susano-O: 2400 ATK - 0 ATK**

"Tsk. So you had one more trick up your sleeve!" Sawatari shouted, "You weren't worried about not having an available Monster Zone to begin with! You just had to bid your time until you could use both the effects of Adagio to free up your field!"

'That's right," Yuzu smirked. "And I only drew that card thanks to your use of Mass Extinction earlier. So in a way, you were your own undoing."

Sawatari hung his head in shame, before he let out a hearty laugh. "This is one of the best duels I have had in a long time. Not one of us had been able to hold a permanent lead over the others! I'd hate to be however it is that takes on us in the coming future!"

"Indeed/ Agree/ Yup." Gongenzaka, Yuzu and Yuya said in unison.

"I end my turn, and with that the ATK of all monsters on the field return to their regular value. Mellow Madonna being the exception of course." Sawatari said, a look of enjoyment on his face. "Now Yuzu, don't keep our audience in suspense any longer now!"

"I don't intend to!" Yuzu shouted back, a wide smile on her face. "Atashi no turn! Draw!"

Taking a brief glance at her card, Yuzu thought up just what to do next.

"Minna, the time has come!" She proclaimed, the audience beginning to surge with anxiety. "Since my second Standby Phase has come, the countdown of En Vision has finally reached its end! I send it to the Graveyard in order to Xyz Summon the revealed Wing Diva the Melodious Choir and attach both Shopina and Puccina the Melodious Maestras from my Graveyard to Wing Diva as material! Everyone, give it up for our wondrous performer!"

En Vision glowed a gold and black light before falling to the ground and transforming into an Xyz portal. Behind Yuzu, two streaks of light shot out before entering said portal as Yuzu began her summoning chant.

"Serene angel flying through the music-filled air with a song of delight in your heart, spread your elegant wings now and touch the mind and heart of all who gaze upon you with your divine inspiration! Xyz Shoukan! Take your place on stage now, the song of salvation! Rank 7! Wing Diva the Melodious Choir!"

In a storm of feathers, Yuzu's new Xyz Monster unfurled her black-and-white wings while she twirled through the hair, gems in her hair net and dress glimmering in the light of the stage as she sang a beautiful aria.

 **Wing Diva the Melodious Choir:** _ **2000 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Rank 7/ OVU 2/ Fairy/ Xyz/ Effect**

All eyes were upon Wing Diva as she descended from high above the stage, steadily lowering herself with each wing flap until she was hovering just above Yuzu.

"So, that's your new Ace." Yuya remarked, amazed that Yuzu had been able to successfully drag the duel out for so long. "It represents your bond with Ruri doesn't it?"

"It does." Yuzu replied somewhat solemnly, before her eyes lightened. "But this isn't the time for depressing thoughts. If they were here right now, Serena or Rin would definitely scold me for losing focus during a duel. And I don't want them to be angry! Wing Diva no Kouka! Once per turn, I can detach an Overlay Unit in order to Special Summon one Melodious monster from my hand or Graveyard! I detach Shopina in order to Special Summon her!"

A tall elegant woman with green hair and a blue dress appeared, sitting down on a seat shaped like butterfly wings appeared to Yuzu's field, shimmering in the light of the stage as she positioned herself next to Wing Diva.

 **Shopina the Melodious Diva:** _ **2300 ATK**_ **/ 1700 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 7/ Fairy/ Effect**

"Wing Diva's other effect!" Yuzu proclaimed as her monster began singing a sustained high note, slowly forming a sphere of musical notes in front of her moth. "Each time I Special Summon a Melodious monster, I can inflict 500 damage to my opponent! Per the rules of the duel, I inflict the first damage to Gongenzaka! Go! Elegant Surge!"

Voice rising in volume, Wing Diva flapped her wings, sending the sphere flying forward before it exploded on the ground in front of Gongenzaka, sending the steadfast duelist skidding backwards.

 **Gongenzaka LP: 600 – 100**

"I use Shopina's effect to add Sonata the Melodious Diva from my Graveyard to my hand." Yuzu declared as she added the card from her Graveyard to her hand. "And thanks to Sonata's effect, I can Special Summon her back to the field!"

 **Sonata the Melodious Diva: 1200 ATK/** _ **1000 DEF**_ **/ LIGHT/ Level 3/ Fairy/ Effect**

"With a second Special Summon, Wing Diva's effect activates again!" Yuzu proclaimed as her Xyz Monster charged up another attack, this one pointed in Sawatari's direction. "Elegant Surge!"

 **Sawatari LP: 1300 - 800**

"And now," Yuzu smiled, "I'll bring out another new performer to this stage. Magic card, Yuugo hatsudo! I fuse together Sonata the Melodious Diva and Shopina the Melodious Maestra together for another Fusion Summon!"

"That's the third one she's done in this duel!" Tatsuya exclaimed, having remembered the power of Yuzu's last couple Fusion Summons.

Both Shopina and Sonata grabbed each other's hands before they rose into the air before swirling together in a Fusion portal as Yuzu chanted.

"Supreme composer, flowing melody! Blend your pitches together under the light of the full moon and gather your new power! Yuugo Shoukan! Sing in the center of the moonlit stage, the song of justice! Level 6! Luna Diva the Melodious Choir!"

From the Fusion portal, a young looking fairy in a deep blue chamber-ball dress decorated with a golden crescent moon, a violet top with crescent moons along the neckline and puffed up sleeves covering her shoulders. Her hair was as black as the night sky, held up in two buns on the sides of her head by red ribbons, decorated by silver flower/crescent moon clips. Eyelids fluttering open to reveal two beautiful pools of vibrant emerald green, Luna Diva belted out a deep operatic note before standing alongside Wing Diva, the two monsters clasping their hands together.

 **Luna Diva the Melodious Choir:** _ **2000 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 6/ Fairy/ Fusion/ Effect**

"This monster," Yuya murmured to himself. Taking note of the name, summoning type, summoning chant and appearance, the tomato-headed boy came to one conclusion. "It represents her bond with Serena."

"Wing Diva's effect!" Yuzu declared, "Elegant Surge!"

 **Yuya LP: 1500 – 1000**

"Yuzu-oneechan's Xyz Monster is incredible!" Futoshi exclaimed. "It just gives me the shivers~~!"

Yuzu grinned back at the audience and her opponents. "Thank you all for your enthusiasm. And now, it is time to call forth one more performer!"

Her opponents raised an eyebrow, confused by her declaration.

"How?" Sawatari asked. "You have no cards in your hand, no Pendulum Monsters face-up in your Extra Deck and since Wing Diva is an Xyz Monster, you cannot use her to Xyz Summon."

"There is more than one way to bring out a strong Xyz Monster." Yuzu answered, smiling at Wing Diva, who gave her one in return.

Yuzu closed her eyes, almost unable to believe what she was about to do next. Mind briefly thinking back to the hours Ruri had spent teaching her the art of Xyz Summoning, she thanked her sister and teacher for everything that she had taught her.

"I, using the Rank Seven Wing Diva the Melodious Choir, reconstruct the Overlay Network!"

Wing Diva flapped her wings as a black and gold Xyz portal opened up beneath her feet. Giving the audience one final curtsey, she transformed into a golden streak of light that enter the portal while Yuzu chanted.

"Enchanting muse who fills the heavens with the singing of a thousand hymns, take flight through the melodious sky, encompass the world below in your divine wings, and lift the souls of all to a higher plane of genius! Rank-Up Xyz Change! To the center of the stage, the song of heaven! Rank 8! Wing Prima the Melodious Choir!"

All eyes were locked on the swirling portal as it morphed into thousands of rings of golden musical verses that radiated thousands of harmonic melodies. Merging together, the verses blended their shape and music together until a radiant fairy flew in their place. With her long white hair stacked atop her head like a wig and adorned with strands of pink pearls, Wing Prima wore a dress similar to that of Wing Diva's, but white in color and decorated by large gold ribbons and deep green gemstones. Her eyes were a warm, deep mocha, while her lips and cheeks were painted with red lipstick and a pair of large white-treble cleft earrings hung from her ears. But her most beautiful feature was the pair of golden angel wings attached to her body, even more lovely and elegant than that of her predecessor's. Holding her head high, she sang an extremely high-pitched note until the chandelier of the theatre actually cracked, causing her to blush dramatically before landing besides her master and Luna Diva.

 **Wing Prima the Melodious Choir:** _ **3000 ATK**_ **/ 3000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Rank 8/ OVU 2/ Fairy/ Xyz/ Effect**

"You actually performed a Rank-Up without the use of a Rank-Up card." Yuya remarked, a hint of pride in his voice. "Definitely worth the wait."

"Thank you Yuya." Yuzu said, "And now for the coup de grâce! Thanks to Wing Prima's effect, she can attack once for each Overlay Unit she has. With two, she can attack twice! But first, Luna Diva attacks Sassy Rookie!"

"But Sassy Rookie cannot be destroyed by battle once per turn." Sawatari reminded.

"That's why I need this." Yuzu cried as she leaped upwards and grabbed an Action Card. "Action Magic, Rust Toxic! This negates all 'cannot be destroyed by battle or card effect' abilities until the end of the turn! Meaning Sassy Rookie is going to retire real soon!"

Sassy Rookie looked down in shock as his lower body became covered in red rust, parts of Luna Diva's skin getting covered up as well.

"Go! Moonlight Wave!" Yuzu ordered as her monster became surrounded by the glow of the full moon before shooting a powerful wave of sound at the cartoonish looking goblin, destroying it in a flash.

 **Sawatari LP: 800 - 300**

"Luna Diva's effects activate!" Yuzu exclaimed, "Each time a Melodious monster I control destroys a monster in battle, I regain 200 Life Points while all monsters my opponents control lose the same amount! Luna Radiance!"

Luna Diva sang a low-sounding note, Yuzu becoming enveloped in a silvery shaft of light. Yuya was briefly awestruck by her momentarily sacred appearance, it had made her look like a goddess.

 **Yuzu LP: 400 – 600**

 **Abyss Actor – Legendary Star: 3000 – 200 = 2800 ATK**

 **Abyss Actor – Big Star: 2500 – 200 = 2300 ATK**

 **Abyss Actor – Mellow Madonna: 2200 – 200 = 2000 ATK**

 **Superheavy Koujin Susano-O: 2400 – 200 = 2200 ATK**

"And there's more! Each time Luna Diva destroys a monster by battle, she can attack again!" Yuzu added, "And now she's attacking Yuya directly!"

Voice slowly raising, Luna Diva prepared to strike Yuya, when the Entertainment Duelist smiled.

"I activate the Graveyard effect of Pendulum Guard Zone!" He exclaimed. "If an opponent's monster with ATK higher than my Life Points declares an attack, I can banish Guard Zone and discard a Pendulum Monster from my hand. I discard the Odd-Eyes Phantom Dragon that Sawatari returned to my hand earlier, and now I can negate a number of attacks this turn, equal to the Level of the discarded monster! Phantom Dragon was Level Seven, so now the next seven attacks Yuzu declared are negated!"

A semi-transparent barrier appeared around Yuya, blocking Luna Diva's song and forcing the fairy back.

"And because of that, you can negate Wing Prima's attacks." Yuzu stated. "Alright then, I saw something like this coming. I end my Battle Phase, before activating Wing Prima's other effect. By detaching an Overlay Unit, I can target a card on the field and returning it to the hand. I choose to return Gongenzaka's QC-Nagi-0-Tsurugi back to his Extra Deck!"

Wing Prima absorbed an Overlay Unit into the center of the gem on her chest before inhaling and letting lose a high pitched note, resonating through the air in a column of sound waves. With a single wing flap, she caused ribbons of golden musical verses to stream from her wings, which wrapped around the column of sound before the entire mass slammed into Gongenzaka's Fusion Monster, causing it to disappear in a shower of sparks.

"I end my turn. And now Divine Melodious Stage restores my Life Points once more."

 **Yuzu LP: 600 – 1600**

"Ore no turn. Draw!" Gongenzaka exclaimed, before turning his attention to Yuya. "Battle, Superheavy Koujin Susano-O, attack Yuya directly!"

Not waiting for his friend to finish his sentence, Yuya started jumping around the stage, rollerblades activating as the other monsters began flanking him.

"Sorry Yuya, but no Action Cards to save you this time." Sawatari boasted as Susano-O began attacking Yuya, who found a momentary opening in the warlord's attack and slipped past him.

Before he could take a moment to relax, Yuya turned around to see Susano-O right above him, bringing his naginata down and kicking up a cloud of dust.

"Is it over?" Futoshi asked, peaking through his fingers.

Squinting her eyes, Ayu looked at the dust cloud before she noticed something. "Look!"

Dust clearing, Yuya was revealed to be completely fine. Floating besides him was a living puffball, wearing a night cap and a long tail with a star at the end. The creature cried 'Kuri-kuri,' as it circled around Yuya.

 **Entermate Kuriborder:** _ **300 ATK**_ **/ 200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 1/ Fiend/ Effect**

"A good entertainer keeps his best tricks in reserve." Yuya explained. "When you attacked me directly Gongenzaka, I activated the effect of Entermate Kuriborder in my hand, allowing me to Special Summon it."

"But you did so in attack position, meaning you'll still lose from one more attack." Gongenzaka stated. "Susano-O, finish him!"

"Entermate Kuriborder's additional effect!" Yuya countered as the mechanical warlord bisected his living ball of fluff. "All battle damage I take involving this card is reduced to zero, and I regain Life Points equal to the amount I would have taken!"

 **Yuya LP: 1000 – 3700**

"Amazing!"

"Incredible!"

"I've never seen such a back and forth duel before!"

The audience cheered, completely and utterly entranced by the combined performances of the four duelists. Each turn had been more suspenseful than the last as each duelist managed to counter the attacks and effects of the others.

"Truly splendid!" Shuzo exclaimed over the loud speaker. "All four competitors have held out for so long, the duel has reached nearly twelve full turns, and no one has yet to be eliminated! This hot-blooded action just makes me want to join in myself! But this is my daughter's time to shine so I'll restrain myself for now and continue to watch these passionate duelists go at it!" He cheered, several members of the audience shouting in agreement.

Unaware to anyone, a figure lurked in the shadows, having observed the whole duel and studying the plays of each duelist.

"Sawatari Shingo has learned Synchro Summoning, and Gongenzaka Noboru has added Fusion Summoning to his arsenal as well. Yuzu is capable of performing a Rank-Up without the use of a Spell card, and will no doubt move onto learning how to Synchro Summon after we attack Academia." Yusuke whispered before looking down at a deck of cards in his hand as they gave a soft glow.

"What do you guys think Yuya will do in order to combat such powerful opponents?"

A collection of whispering voices quickly filled his head, giving him a headache just as fast. "One at a time guys, one at a time," her murmured, making sure no one else could hear him.

"Ore no turn, draw!" Yuya shouted, Yuzu responding immediately afterwards.

"During your Standby Phase Yuya, I activate my other set card! Pendulum Shift!" She exclaimed, much to Yuya's shock.

"Eh!? You have a copy of that card too?" He asked with wide eyes.

"Just for emergencies. After all, I might not always have the Scales I need." She explained, "Using Pendulum Shift's effect, I target your Timegazer Magician in order to lower its Scale to 1, meaning now your Pendulum Summon is sealed!"

" _Oh, I don't feel so good."_ Timegazer groaned as the number below him shifted from '8' to '1.'

Stargazer couldn't help but smirk a little at his other half's discomfort.

Looking down at the card he drew, Yuya prayed it would be something that just by himself a little more time. Upon seeing what said card was, Yuya's eyes widened in shock.

" _This is… So it's time to make your debut."_ Yuya said to himself.

"You have only one card in your hand..." Yuzu said.

"…A practically non-existent Scale…" Sawatari added.

"….And no monsters to help protect you from any one of us, Action Cards won't save you forever." Gongenzaka concluded.

"It's over Yuya!" The three exclaimed in unison.

As if no one had heard the shouts of the other three, someone or something turned off all the lights, leaving the field in darkness before a pair of spotlights focused their attention on Yuya.

"Ladies and Gentlemen!" Yuya proclaimed, hands held high as the Pendulum on his neck swayed back and forth. "My wondrous opponents and I have amazed you all in this duel. Between the various counters and Summoning methods we have brought out against each other, I dare say this has been the most fun Duel I have ever taken part of! And now, it is time for a new power to make its debut, and a new player beside it. It's time for me to unveil Pendulum's new evolution!"

"Pendulum's…"

"new…"

"evolution?" Yuya's three opponents asked.

"But you don't have a way to Pendulum Summon!" Sawatari roared. "Both your Scales are 1, and you can't Summon anything when your Scales are the same!"

"Under most circumstances you would be right Sawatari." Yuya admitted, "However…"

Holding it towards the sky, the card Yuya had drawn began to emit a bright light, the Pendulum on his neck swinging faster and faster. "When Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon is face-up in my Extra Deck and there is a card in both of my Pendulum Zones, I can Pendulum Summon this monster regardless of their value!"

"A monster that can be Pendulum Summoned by ignoring the Scales!" Yuzu exclaimed, eyes wide in shock.

"Can such a monster even exist?" Gongenzaka cried out in shock.

The crystal Pendulum reappeared in the sky, swinging far beyond the previous confines of the two pillars of light. Glowing in many colors as it traced multiple arcs of light across the sky, the Pendulum created a spectacular light show as it left an aurora in its wake, beauty intensified by the crystal chandelier. The audience was mesmerized as the lights illuminated the entire arena, even Yusuke was a bit impressed.

"Swing, Pendulum of my Soul!" Yuya chanted, "More vividly, more fiercely, go beyond the limits and extend the arc of light across the sky towards a glorious, shining future! Overscale Pendulum!"

A portal opened up between the various arcs, a single dragon-shaped stream of multi-colored light exiting before flying around the arena above the spectators, roaring majestically before descending to the ground.

"Break free from the darkness and bring forth hope with those dual-colored eyes! Come forth! Level 8! Wonder-Eyes Pendulum Dragon!"

The glow dispersed from the draconic shape, revealing a large monster. Resembling Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon, this new beast had the same vibrant red scales, smaller golden ones that glittered in between. Irises glowing in all colors of the visible spectrum, the dragon's eyes shifted like a kaleidoscope. Instead of the chunks of armor that its pre-evolved form had, Wonder-Eyes instead had two glorious wings of light extending from its back, which he flapped a single time before roaring loudly and majestically.

 **Wonder-Eyes Pendulum Dragon:** _ **3000 ATK**_ **/ 2500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ P.S. 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Wonder-Eyes…Pendulum Dragon…." Yuzu muttered. "So this is Odd-Eyes true evolution? But, even with 3000 ATK, you won't be able to do enough damage to take out all of us!"

"I've said it in the past and I'll say it again!" Yuya stated as he jumped onto Wonder-Eyes' back. "It's not over until my Life Points I hit zero! Battle! Wonder-Eyes Pendulum Dragon, attack Luna Diva the Melodious Choir!"

"Are you daft!?" Yuzu exclaimed, "Luna Diva cannot be destroyed by battle and I don't take any battle damage involving her!"

Luna Diva began to sing loudly before Wonder-Eyes lunged towards her, knocking her back but not destroying her.

Suddenly, a bright aurora filled the sky as the spirit of Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon descended before entering the body of Wonder-Eyes."

"What? What's happening?!" A dumbfounded Sawatari asked.

"The effect of Wonder-Eyes activates!" Yuya explained, "After it battles a Level Five or higher monster, I can inflict damage to my opponent equal to the ATK of one Pendulum Monster that's face-up in my Extra Deck! Since Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon is the only monster that qualifies for this effect, you Yuzu will take 2500 damage! Ikay, Remembrance Force!"

Throwing its head back, Wonder-Eyes released a beam of multi-colored light straight from his eyes at Yuzu. Forcing herself to move despite the shock, Yuzu jumped from the stage and grabbed an Action Card that was lying down on a seat cushion.

"Action Magic! Half-Acceleration! Effect damage is halved!" Yuzu countered, her image managing to barely evade the brunt force of Wonder-Eyes' attack.

 **Yuzu LP: 1600 – 350**

"That's not all Wonder-Eyes can do!" Yuya continued. "Wonder-Eyes is capable of attacking all monsters my opponent controls, once each! Meaning it can continue attacking! Let's go, Wonder-Eyes! Attack Sawatari's monsters and Gongenzaka's Susano-O! Transcendent Strike Flame!"

Whipping its head around, Wonder-Eyes unleashed a rainbow-colored stream of spiraling flames, ripping up the stage as it traveled towards the four monsters, aiming to incinerate them in a shower of light.

"Action Magic, Shave Guard!" Sawatari countered. "By halving my Life Points, I don't take any damage for the remainder of this turn!"

"Superheavy Samurai Kotodam-A's Graveyard effect!" Gongenzaka added, "By banishing it, I can also negate effect damage! Since out monster's ATK and DEF are both 3000, neither will be destroyed by battle as well!"

Smoke clearing to reveal Susano-O still sitting on the field and Sawatari's own field completely abandoned, both duelists were panting heavily, endurance and stamina given a run from the constant attacks throughout the duel.

 **Sawatari LP: 300 – 150**

"Fantastic!" Yuya exclaimed joyfully. "You all have survived the debut of Pendulum's Evolution! You should all be very proud of yourselves. I end my turn. Now, let's give our audience more of our sublime entertainment!"

The crowds continued to cheer, many unsure of who they wanted to win. Yusuke on the other, merely smiled.

"Overscale Pendulum…" He murmured before turning around and leaving the duel arena. "What an incredible power. Cronus-sama was right to send me on this mission. The Lancers are not the same as they were during Academia's war, they have gotten stronger."

" _Especially Odd-Eyes' master."_

Turning his attention to the side, Yusuke noticed a distinctly draconic shadow standing beside him, eyes glowing red and the silhouette of a heart on its chest.

"You wish to battle him, don't you Black Heart?" Yusuke asked the shadow as he continued walking.

" _The other six dragons and their masters are nowhere near as powerful as we are."_ The dragon, Black Heart replied, voice deep and ominous. _"They have yet to tap into their true combined powers, ones that we have mastered."_

"Slow your roll there aibou." Yusuke chuckled, somewhat amused by his partner's brashness. "We will battle against them soon. Don't forget, we're going to Academia tomorrow, meaning there is a good chance we'll run into Yuri and Starve Venom."

" _I'm going to enjoy that fight."_ Black Heart stated as Yusuke exited the building, revealing it to be almost dusk.

"Hmm, that late huh." Yusuke nonchalantly said, "We should get out of the city before leaving this Dimension, just to make sure Reiji doesn't detect us. Care to give me a lift?"

" _Of course, aibou."_ Black Heart answered, causing Yusuke to close his eyes.

The world seemed to go silent as Yusuke opened his eyes, yellow irises transformed into a crimson red. Slowly, the shadows all around Yusuke slithered and gathered onto his back, forming two shadowy blobs before solidifying and crafting themselves into a pair of bat-like wings, edges sharp like blades. With a single flap, Yusuke shot up from the ground and ascended to the sky in mere seconds before flying away from Maiami city.

" _For the sake of my home, I cannot falter."_ Yusuke said internally as he soared. _"Hikari, despite what you said that day, we are not bad people, just ones trying to protect their home from destruction. At least, I hope Cronus-sama was right about us being the good guys…."_

* * *

Cards in this chapter

**Yuya's cards**

Wonder-Eyes Pendulum Dragon

3000 ATK/ 2500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ P.S. 0/ Dragon/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ If this card is the only card in your Pendulum Zone: You can place 1 Pendulum monster from your Deck in your other Pendulum Zone. If a Pendulum Monster you control battles an opponent's monster with higher ATK: You can make that battle damage 0, also your opponent takes any battle damage you would have taken instead. You can only use each Pendulum Effect of "Wonder-Eyes Pendulum Dragon" per turn.

M/ If there are 2 cards in your Pendulum Zone and "Odd-Eyes Pendulum Dragon" is face-up in your Extra Deck: You can Pendulum Summon this card, ignoring the Pendulum Scales. Can attack all monsters your opponent controls, once each. If this card battles a Level 5 or higher monster your opponent controls, after damage calculation: You can inflict damage to your opponent equal to the ATK of 1 Pendulum Monster face-up in your Extra Deck. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect: You can place it in your Pendulum Zone.

Entermate Harmony Symflorist

2700 ATK/ 1800 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 7/ P.S. 9/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

3 LIGHT "Entermate" monsters

P/ Special Summoned Monsters you control are unaffected by your opponent's card effects the turn they are Special Summoned.

M/ If all Materials used in this card's Fusion Summon were Pendulum Monsters: This card cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects. Once per turn, if this card battles a Special Summoned monster your opponent controls: You can make it gain ATK equal to the total ATK of all other face-up Pendulum Monsters you control, until the end of the Battle Phase. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect: You can place it in your Pendulum Zone; and if you do, you can target 1 Pendulum Monster in your GY or 1 of your banished Pendulum Monsters, add it to your hand.

Reincarnation Paladin

2500 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 4/ Spellcaster/ Xyz/ Effect

2 Level 4 Spellcaster monsters

If this card is Xyz Summoned using a "Magician" Pendulum Monster as Material: You can target 1 Monster Card in your GY, add it to your hand. If a monster you control is destroyed by battle or card effect: You can detach 1 Material from this card; Special Summon, from your hand or Deck, 1 Monster with the same Type, Attribute and Level as the destroyed monster. You can only use each effect of "Reincarnation Paladin" once per turn.

Entertainment Fusion

Normal Spell

Fusion Summon 1 "Entermate" Fusion Monster, by using monsters you control or in your hand as Material. You can also shuffle "Entermate" monsters in your GY into your Deck as Material. A Fusion Monster summoned via this card's effect gains ATK equal to the number of Materials used in its Fusion Summon X300. If this card is in your GY (except the turn it was sent to the GY) and a monster summoned via its effect is destroyed by your opponent's card (by battle or by card effect) and sent to the GY: You can banish this card; you take no damage for the rest of this Turn.

Pendulum Guard Zone

Normal Trap

Activate only if a card or effect that would destroy a card(s) in the Pendulum Zone is activated. Cards in both players' Pendulum Zones cannot be destroyed by card effect, until your next Standby Phase. If an opponent's monster with ATK higher than your LP declares an attack: You can banish this card in your GY and discard 1 Pendulum Monster; this turn, you can negate a number of attacks your opponent declares, equal to the Level of the discarded monster.

**Yuzu's cards**

En Angel – Hana

1000 ATK/ 1500 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 8/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ Your opponent cannot activate cards or effects in response to the effects of monsters you control that were Special Summoned from the Extra Deck.

M/ (This card is always treated as a "Melodious" monster.)

If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can add 1 Level 4 or lower "En" monster from your Deck to your hand. You can tribute this card: Add 1 Continuous Spell card from your Deck or GY to your hand. You can only use each effect of "En Angel – Hana" once per turn. A monster that was Special Summoned from the Extra Deck using this card as Material gains these effects.

*Your Special Summons cannot be negated.

*Special Summoned monsters you control cannot be targeted, or destroyed, by your opponent's card effects.

Alto the Melodious Songstress

600 ATK/ 300 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 3/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ During your Main Phase, if this card is the only card in your Pendulum Zone: You can add 1 "Melodious" Pendulum Monster from your Deck to your hand.

M/ Once per turn: You can declare a Level between 4 and 6, the Levels of all "Melodious" monsters in your hand become the same as the declared Level, until the end of this turn. You cannot Normal Summon monsters the turn you activate this effect.

Arpeggio the Melodious Diva

1200 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ P.S. 7/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ If you do not control another "Melodious" monster in your other Pendulum Zone: This card's Pendulum Scale becomes 4. Once per turn: You can target 2 cards in your Pendulum Zone; increase the Pendulum Scale of the first target by up to 3 (MAX. 13) and decrease the Pendulum Scale of the other by up to 3 (MIN. 0.)

M/ If this card is Special Summoned: You can target 1 "Melodious" Pendulum Monster in your Pendulum Zone; Special Summon it. During the End Phase, if you do not control a card in one of your Pendulum Zones: You can place this face-up card you control in your Pendulum Zone.

Orchestra the Melodious Diva

1000 ATK/ 2500 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Fairy/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your hand) if you control no monsters. An Xyz Monster summoned using tis card as Material gains this effect.

*If this card is Xyz Summoned, your opponent cannot activate Spell/Trap cards, until the end of this turn.

Choral the Melodious Diva

1800 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 5/ P.S. 7/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ You can Pendulum Summon 1 "Melodious" monster in addition to your regular Pendulum Summon. (You can only apply this effect once per turn).

M/ You can Special Summon this card (from your hand) if you control a face-up "Melodious" monster (You can only Special Summon "Choral the Melodious Diva" once per turn this way.) If this card is sent to the Extra Deck: You can add 1 face-up "Melodious" monster from your Extra Deck to your hand.

Dirge the Melodious Songstress

800 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 4/ Fairy/ Effect

If this card is Special Summoned: You can send 1 "Melodious" monster from your hand or Deck to your GY. Once per turn, you can discard 1 card: Target 1 "Melodious" monster in your GY; Special Summon it.

Puccina the Melodious Maestra

1900 ATK/ 2300 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 7/ P.S. 3/ Fairy/ Pendulum/ Effect

* _Effects unrevealed_ *

Haydina the Melodious Maestra

2100 ATK/ 1200 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 5/ Fairy/ Fusion/ Effect

2+ "Melodious" monsters

All other monsters you control gain ATK equal to the number of Materials used in this cards Fusion Summon X300. Cannot be targeted for attacks while you control another face-up "Melodious" monster. During the turn this card is removed from the field: You can make all other monsters you control gain ATK equal to the number of Materials used in this card's Fusion Summon X300; and if you do, you can add 1 "Melodious" card from your Deck to your hand.

Luna Diva the Melodious Choir

2000 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Level 6/ Fairy/ Fusion/ Effect

1 "Melodious Maestra" monster + 1 "Melodious" monster

Cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects. You take no damage from battles involving this card. Gains an additional attack each time it destroys an opponent's monster by battle. Each time a "Melodious" monster you control destroys an opponent's monster by battle: You can gain 200 LP, also all monsters your opponent controls lose 200 ATK.

Vivaldina the Melodious Maestra

1800 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Rank 4/ Fairy/ Xyz/ Effect

2 Level 4 "Melodious" monsters

Fairy monsters you control gain ATK and DEF equal to the number of Materials attached to this card X200. Once per turn: You can detach 1 Material from this card; draw 1 card. If the card drawn by this effect is a Level 4 or lower "Melodious" monster: You can reveal that card, and if you do, Special Summon it.

Wing Diva the Melodious Choir

2000 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Rank 7/ Fairy/ Xyz/ Effect

2 Level 7 "Melodious" monsters

Cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects. You take no damage from battles involving this card. Each time you Special Summon a "Melodious" monster(s): Inflict 500 damage to your opponent. Once per turn: You can detach 1 Material from this card; Special Summon 1 "Melodious" monster from your hand or GY.

Wing Prima the Melodious Choir

3000 ATK/ 3000 DEF/ LIGHT/ Rank 8/ Fairy/ Xyz/ Effect

You can also Xyz Summon this card using 1 Rank 6 or higher "Melodious" Xyz Monster you control as Material. (Xyz Materials attached to that card become Xyz Materials on this card.) Can attack a number of times during each Battle Phase, up to the number of Materials attached to itself. You can detach 1 Material from this card: Target 1 card on the field; return it to the hand.

Divine Melodious Stage

Field Spell

Cannot be destroyed while you control a Special Summoned "Melodious" monster. During each of your End Phases: Gain LP equal to the number of "Melodious" monsters you control X500. Once per turn, if you Special Summon a "Melodious" monster: You can add 1 "Melodious" monster from your Deck to your hand.

En Vision

Continuous Spell

During your 1st Standby Phase after this card's activation: Reveal 1 "En," "Melodious," "Moonlight," "Wind Witch," or "Lyrical Luscinia" Fusion, Synchro, or Xyz Monster in your Extra Deck and send, from your Main Deck to your GY, Material monsters listed on that card. During your 2nd Standby Phase after this card's activation: You can send this card to your GY; Special Summon the monster revealed by this effect (This Special Summon is treated as either a Fusion, Synchro or Xyz Summon, depending on the type of monster revealed.) If the summoned monster is an Xyz Monster: Attach the monsters sent to the GY by this card's first effect as Material to the summoned monster. If the monster summoned by this card's effect is destroyed by battle or card effect and sent to the GY: You can banish both it and this card; draw until you have 5 cards in your hand. You can only activate 1 "En Vision" per Duel.

Harmonic Fusion

Normal Spell

(This card is always treated as a "Melodious" card.)

Fusion Summon 1 "Melodious" Fusion Monster from your Extra Deck, by shuffling monsters from your GY into your Deck as Material. A monster Fusion Summoned via this effect gains ATK equal to the number of Materials used in its Fusion Summon X300. You can only activate 1 "Harmonic Fusion" per turn.

En Grave

Normal Trap

Send up to 5 "En," "Melodious," "Moonlight," "Wind Witch," or "Lyrical Luscinia" Fusion, Synchro, Xyz or Pendulum Monsters from your Deck or Extra Deck to your GY: Destroy as many Spell and Trap cards your opponent controls as possible; and if you do, half the LP of all players who had a card(s) destroyed by this effect.

Adagio

Normal Trap

If you control a "Melodious" monster(s): Halve all effect damage you take this turn. If an opponent's monster declares an attack: You can banish this card in your GY and tribute all "Melodious' monsters you control; change the ATK of all monsters your opponent controls to 0, until the end of this turn. You can only activate 1 effect of "Adagio" per turn, and only once that turn.

**Shin Sawatari's cards**

Abyss Actor – Stage Technician

800 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ DARK/ Level 2/ P.S. 1/ Fiend/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect

P/ Once per turn, if an "Abyss Actor" monster you control is destroyed by battle or card effect: You can add 1 "Abyss Actor" monster with a different original name from your Deck to your hand.

M/ Cannot be used as Synchro Material, except for the Synchro Summon of an "Abyss Actor" Synchro Summon. Once per turn: You can target 1 "Abyss Actor" Pendulum Monster in your Pendulum Zone; return it to your hand, but you cannot Normal or Special Summon it this turn.

Abyss Actor – Loyal Sidekick

500 ATK/ 300 DEF/ DARK/ Level 1/ P.S. 5/ Fiend/ Pendulum/ Tuner/ Effect

P/ Once per turn: You can target 1 non-Tuner "Abyss Actor" monster you control; that target is treated as a Tuner Monster, until the end of this turn. If the monster targeted by this effect is used as Synchro Material: It is sent to the GY instead of the Extra Deck.

M/ Cannot be used as Synchro Material, except for the Synchro Summon of an "Abyss Actor" Synchro Monster. If this card is destroyed while you control an "Abyss Actor" monster(s): You can add 1 "Abyss Script" Spell from your GY to your hand.

Abyss Actor – Legendary Star

3000 ATK/ 2200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 8/ Fiend/ Synchro/ Effect

1 "Abyss Actor" Tuner + 1+ "Abyss Actor" monsters

If this card is Synchro Summoned: You can add 1 "Abyss Actor" monster from your Deck or GY to your hand. You can tribute up to 3 "Abyss Actor" cards you control; return an equal number of cards your opponent controls to the hand. (Quick Effect): You can target 1 "Abyss Actor" monster you control or face-up in your Extra Deck; replace this effect with that monster's effects, until the end of this turn. You can only use each effect of "Abyss Actor - Legendary Star" once per turn.

Abyss Actor Grande Theatre

Field Spell

Each "Abyss Actor" monster you control cannot be destroyed by battle or card once per turn, also you take no damage from the first battle with each "Abyss Actor" monster you control. Each time you Pendulum Summon an Abyss Actor monster(s): Place 1 Abyss counter on this card. Once per turn: You can activate 1 of the following effects.

*If you control no monsters: You can add 1 "Abyss Actor" Pendulum Monster from your Deck to your Extra Deck face-up.

*You can remove any number of Abyss counters from this card: Add 1 "Abyss Actor" Pendulum monster face-up in your Extra Deck to your hand, with a Level equal to the number of counters removed.

Abyss Actor's Dynamic Entry

Continuous Spell

Each time you Normal or Special Summon an "Abyss Actor" monster(s): You can make that monster(s) gain ATK equal to their Level X100, until your next Standby phase. If this card leaves the field: You can add 1 "Abyss Actor" monster or "Abyss Script" Spell card from your Deck to your hand. You can only use this effect of "Abyss Actor's Dynamic Entry" once per turn.

Abyss Actors Standing Ovation

Normal Spell

Draw cards equal to the number of Pendulum Summoned "Abyss Actor" monsters you control. (You can only use this effect of "Abyss Actors Standing Ovation" once per turn.) If an "Abyss Actor" monster you control would be destroyed by battle or card effect: You can banish this card in your GY instead, also add 1 "Abyss Script" Spell card from your GY to your hand.

Abyss Script – Plot Twist

Normal Spell

Each time an "Abyss Actor" monster you control battles an opponent's monster this turn: Apply one of the following effects.

*Your battling monster cannot be destroyed by battle.

*The ATK of the battling monsters are switched, until the end of this turn.

**The Man Gongenzaka's cards**

Superheavy Samurai Soul Heaven Armor

0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 1/ Machine/ Effect

If a "Superheavy" monster(s) you control would be destroyed: You can discard this card instead; also for the rest of this turn, "Superheavy" cards you control cannot be removed from the field by card effect. If you Special Summon a "Superheavy" Synchro Monster while this card is in your GY: You can equip this card and 1 other "Superheavy Samurai Soul" monster in your GY to the summoned monster, but banish them if they leave the field. You can only use 1 effect of "Superheavy Samurai Soul Heaven Armor" per turn, and only once that turn.

Superheavy Samurai Soul Vanquish Armor

1000 ATK/ 1900 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 5/ Machine/ Effect

During your opponent's Battle Phase, if you have no Spell/Trap cards in your GY (Quick Effect): You can discard this card; "Superheavy Samurai" monsters you control cannot be destroyed by battle this turn, also each time a "Superheavy Samurai" monster is attacked, draw 1 card at the end of the damage step. If a "Superheavy Samurai" monster you control was attacked this turn while you have no Spell/Trap cards in your GY and control less cards than your opponent does: You can banish this card in your GY; make 1 monster your opponent controls unable to attack this turn. You can only use each effect of "Superheavy Samurai Soul Vanquish Armor" once per turn.

Superheavy Samurai Kotodam-A

300 ATK/ 800 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 2/ Machine/ Effect

If you have no Spell/Trap card in your GY: You can discard both this card and 1 other "Superheavy Samurai" monster; excavate the top 5 cards of your Deck, and if you do, add all excavated "Superheavy Samurai" monsters to your hand and send all other cards to your GY, also you take damage equal to the number of cards added to your hand by this effect X400. If you would take effect damage while this card is in your GY, except during the turn it was sent to your GY, you can banish this card instead. You can only use each effect of "Superheavy Samurai Kotodam-A" once per turn.

Superheavy Samurai Ashigar-U

400 ATK/ 1800 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 4/ Machine/ Effect

If you control a "Superheavy Samurai" monster: You can Special Summon this card from your hand. (You can only Special Summon "Superheavy Samurai Ashigar-U" once per turn this way.) Once per turn: You can Fusion Summon 1 "Superheavy Samurai" Fusion Monster, using "Superheavy Samurai" monsters you control, in your hand, or that are equipped to monsters you control as Material, including this card.

Superheavy Samurai Soul QC-Nagi-0-Tsurugi

2500 ATK/ 3000 DEF/ EARTH/ Level 8/ Machine/ Fusion/ Effect

2 "Superheavy Samurai" monsters

Once per turn: You can target 1 "Superheavy Samurai" monster you control; equip this card to that target, OR: Unequip this card and Special Summon it. While you have no Spell/Trap cards in your GY, your opponent cannot target "Superheavy Samurai" monsters you control for attacks or with card effects, except the equipped monster. While you have no Spell/Trap cards in your GY: If your opponent targets the monster equipped with this card with a card or effect; you can negate that effect, and if you do, destroy it. If the equipped monster attacks an opponent's monster: At the start of the damage step; destroy that opponent's monster.

**Action cards**

Code of Chivalry

Action Spell

Neither player takes battle damage from direct attacks, until the end of this turn.

Mass Extinction

Action Spell

Destroy all monsters on the field, also any player(s) who had a monster(s) destroyed by this effect draws cards equal to the number of monsters destroyed by this effect.

Guard Swap

Action Spell

Target two battling monsters: Switch their DEF.

Rust Toxic

Action Spell

All 'cannot be destroyed by battle' and 'cannot be destroyed by card effect' effects are negated, until the end of this turn.

Shave Guard

Action Spell

Halve your LP, and if you do, you take no damage for the rest of this turn.

* * *

 **Whew that was exhausting, give me a minute to collect my thoughts. Few, okay.**

 **So this chapter has been the longest I have written thus far, and it shows. First we get a better idea of what the Dark Dimension is going through, and why Cronus and the Duel Priests are attacking the other dimensions. We are introduced to Leiko, Mayu/Hikari's grandmother, who will be playing a somewhat important part later down the line. She's the cool, bad*** type of grandmother we all wish we had, and just wait for her.**

 **Next we have the 'official opening' for the story, which I did just 'cause I can. I'm also planning on doing an ending, but seeing how long this chapter was, I think I'll save that for another time.**

 **Then we get a scene with Cronus, who in case you haven't realized it by now, is that Daiki character Odd-Eyes mentioned a while back, and the same person from Yuya's dream two chapters ago. He clearly has a bad history with Leo, and is only attacking the other dimensions because he's trying to preserve the world he has come to love. We also meet Chronograph Magician for the first time, and are introduced to Cronus' right and left hands; Masaru Tachibana and the 3** **rd** **Mother (credits to Donny for her.) The two are polar opposites in terms of backstory and personality, and once we see more of them, you'll understand why they are Cronus second and third in command.**

 _(Academia's downfall is drawing closer….)_

 **And then the counterparts go their separate ways, at least for now. But fear not valued readers, the next few chapters are going to focus on the other counterpart pairs and their return to their old lives! Stayed tuned to see what shenanigans they get into now that they finally have their own bodies back!**

 **And then we spend the rest of the chapter at the You Show Duel School, which is now better than ever! I was originally planning to give all three of the little ankle bitters a duel, but decided on just Tatsuya, mainly because I couldn't decide on how to create monsters for Futoshi and Ayu. That and then the chapter would probably be longer than necessary.**

 **And then the main event, the Lancer Battle Royal! I know some of you are upset that I purposely left you all hanging with the conclusion, but I have two reasons for doing to. Firstly, I was originally going to have it just be Gongenzaka VS. Sawa, erm, Shin Sawatari, but I realized that since both characters desperately needed a win, it would be better if they didn't just go at each other, so Yuya and Yuzu joined the fray. Secondly, the duel wasn't about winning, but about the four of them improving to face the coming battles, so I decided not to show the end of the duel.**

 **That and I wanted the duel to be just twelve turns and I couldn't decide a winner.**

 **Now, without getting into detail because I still plan on doing that 'Behind-the-Scenes' thing at the end of Arc 1, I'll address each character in the duel.**

 **Yuya: The biggest thing Yuya did was debut Overscale Pendulum and Odd-Eyes' true evolution, Wonder-Eyes Pendulum Dragon. I developed Wonder-Eyes because I think Odd-Eyes didn't get his own proper solo evolution. Sure there where the Pendulum Dragon Fusions, but they weren't actually Pendulum Monsters, and cards like Gravity Dragon and Meteorburst Dragon were more like alternate forms.**

 **I know some people are going to either bring up Phantasma Dragon or Lancer Dragon, but Phantasma Dragon is an evolution for Phantom Dragon, and Lancer Dragon feels more like an evolution for regular Odd-Eyes or Saber Dragon. Plus the card, to me, is pretty meh.**

 **He also brings out a new Pendulum-Fusion Monster (which totally doesn't represent Yuzu, despite what he says. Shame on you guys for assuming that. Nah, I'm just kidding it totally does), as well as a new Xyz Paladin Monster. I got the idea when I realized that since I was bringing Enlightenment and Nirvana High back, I decided to round them out to a trio. There is a Fusion one that will appear, and both these warriors will be part of a very important duel in the coming future. Just not in this story at least…**

 **Look at that, I've said too much. Moving on:**

 **Yuzu: Not much for Yuzu, she reveals that she has other cards from Ray in addition to her En Angel monster, including a ridiculous archetype-exclusive version of Future Fusion that works for Synchro and Xyz Summons as well. She mainly brought out Wing Prima for the first time, and debuted a new Choir Fusion.**

 **Some of you may remember Luna Diva from an Arc-V Fixed chapter I did for Donny a couple months ago. Like I said then, since Yuzu's Fusion Monsters in canon mostly represented her bond with Sora, and seeing as how the Xyz and Synchro Monsters she has in this story represent the bonds she has with Ruri and Rin, I figured I'd give her a couple of Fusions to represent Serena. And yes, that means once she meets Nova and Kasumi, the Ritual and Link Choirs will represent her bond with the two of them.**

 **Sawatari: Besides adopting a Dan Kuroto-esque title (that was a Kamen Rider Ex-Aid reference, look it up), he doesn't do anything. He just remains baggage and almost loses the duel and I am of course totally kidding.**

 **Sawatari has learned how to Synchro Summon. Why Synchro you ask? Well from what I can tell, the general starting point with having Sawatari try not to be just a meat shield is to give him Synchro Summoning. Seriously, I've seen at least two other fics on the site where Sawatari learns how to Synchro Summon.**

 **Of course, I was a little surprised when Abyss Actors got support in Legend Duelist 3 while I was scripting the duel. Of course, at that point I had already utilized Grand Theatre, and I don't think Fantastic Playhouse is as good as people think. You need to reveal two cards to search one, and you need a Pendulum Summoned monster to use the other effect, which isn't that hard….unless you have two cards in your Pendulum Zone and monsters to Pendulum Summon.**

 **Maybe he will use Fantastic Playhouse at one point, but I like my Field Spell better. Besides, Trickstars, F.A. and Triamid have 3 Field Spells each, so what's another for Abyss Actors.**

 **Gongenzaka: Part of the reason I had trouble with this duel was because I don't exactly like Gongenzaka. He's not one of my favorite characters, but he's not one of my least favorite eithers. I'm just very mixed on my feelings towards him, but I do think even he deserves some good things.**

 **As such, I gave him Fusion Summon and Fusion Monsters. QC-Nagi-0-Tsurugi is based on the Kusanagi-no-Tsurugi, one of the imperial regalia of Japan. Expect other Fusions to be based on the remaining two.**

 **I also used the Japanese names for his cards, mostly because I like the puns. Seriously I like puns and word play. Just wait till Venus makes her dueling debut, her deck's got a bunch of punny names.**

 **And then finally, we have Yusuke, who was watching the duel and communicating with his monsters. His dragon Black Heart in particular is kinda freaky, and the thing at the end with the wings! I won't say much, but that was all his dragon's doing. You'll see what I mean when he and Yuri duel….which is gonna be soon. MWUHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!**

 **Now onto review shout-outs!**

 **HunterHQ: The Ritual and Link Dimensions will not be explored until after the first arc of the story. Chapters 2 and 3 were mainly meant as a way to introduce them since for the time being, the Dark Dimension is getting most of the focus out of the 3 OC dimensions. Maybe the counterparts will show up briefly in a chapter or two, but for now they won't be doing anything major anytime soon.**

 **Donjusticia, creator of the Dark Summons, Overlord of insane plots, OP Ultimate Monsters, SoR, and several other things: Yeah, Mayu and Biograph have a rather vitriolic relationship. Whether or not there is a love triangle amongst the Universe Magicians, I will not say. But I will say that until Astrograph returns, Star and Timegazer Magicians will be constantly snarking at each other.**

 **Stargazer: Why me?**

 **Timegazer** _ **(at the same time)**_ **: Why me? See I knew you were going to say that.**

 **And yeah, no double updates for a long while, too much to proofread.**

 **Epsilon Tarantula: Well Leo may be alive, but 'well' on the other hand….Let's just say that once he runs into Cronus, that 'Karma-Houdini' status is going sayonara.**

 **Mayu/Hikari: What are you looking at me for Akato, Yuzu's the one who underestimated you.**

 **Yuzu: Hey I didn't design that stupid firewall thing!**

 **thetiger39: I don't plan on doing a Yugo/Serena match-up anytime soon. Well I mean I did plan for this one duel for Yugo after, well can't spoil that, but the idea was scrapped in order to keep the story on a good pace.**

 **And as for the Doktor, that horrible scum bucket, I have plans for him. Just you wait….**

 **Guest (CityLover96): The Dark Dimension people are not Dark Signers. If you want an Arc V story with Dark Signers, go read Signs of Renewal. They do use the SoR Dark Summons, but the lore behind them in this universe is completely different in this story. The Signer stuff is just the inspiration.**

 **Also I can tell you are a dub watcher since you called the character by their dub names. Let me make this clear, I do not hate Arc V's English dub. I have very, very very very, very mixed feelings about it, but I don't completely hate it. Clips I can stomach, but full episodes, nope. And, will I don't want to offend any of you who actually like the Arc V dub, I feel like I should ask you guys to refer to the characters by their original Japanese dub names, since that is the continuity this story is based.**

 **In order to prevent myself from saying this more than one other time, I'll explain. To me, English-subbed Japanese episodes of anime and English dubbed anime are two separate continuities. Case in point:**

 **In subbed version of episode 124 of Arc V, Yuya encounters Ruri while looking for Yuzu. He's surprised that she's Shun's sister but makes no other comments.**

 **In the dubbed version however, Yuya's reaction to seeing Lulu was, to quote: "That's Shay's sister? She's cute, she got the good genes."**

 **In all honesty, that line did make laugh a little, mostly because I can totally image Shay and Zuzu beating Yuya to a pulp for saying that.**

 **If I talk about the episode with my friends and say that Yuya called Ruri cute, I am technically incorrect. Because Yuya never called RURI cute, but he did call her dub version LULU cute.**

 **Another example is the scene with Yugo and Yuzu during the Synchro Arc. In the subs, Yugo said that the outfit Yuzu borrowed from Serena would probably stink by now. In the dub, Yugo made a similar comment to Zuzu, as well as saying that her fashion sense was outdated, causing her to hit him with her fan.**

 **This is a bit of an overreaction I believe on Zuzu's part. In the sub when Yuzu slapped Yugo, it was because Yugo said she could borrow some of Rin's clothes and that they should be the same size (all while he was clearly looking at her breasts).**

 **So if you say "Yuzu slapped Yugo for insulting her fashion sense," that is not true. It was her dub version Zuzu that Yugo accidently offended by insulting her fashion sense.**

 **This doesn't just apply to Arc V though. Since Season 4 of GX was never dubbed, I feel the urge to correct people when they say something like, "Atticus dueled Fujiwara," or that Jaden and Yugi dueled as the show's Ceremonial Battle. Since Atticus and Jaden are the dub's interpretations of the characters and both these duels happened in the un-dubbed fourth season, it's wrong. A similar thing can be said about Z-One being the final boss of 5D'S. In the original version yes. In the dub everything after Yusei VS. Aporia (as well as several episodes beforehand) weren't dubbed, so when talking about the dub and bringing up Yusei and Z-One's fight that never happened, you're technically in the wrong.**

 **And especially when character backstories and motivations are changed in the dub, referring to the characters in the Japanese names don't exactly mesh up all that well. For instance, take Marik. The reason he went after Yugi in the original Japanese was because he thought Yami had killed his father, and wanted to kill him as revenge.**

 **Really Marik, you want to kill a ghost who has been trapped in a puzzle necklace for thousands of years, who can only interact with the real world by overshadowing the body of a teenage boy, neither of whom knew about the Tomb Keepers until meeting you and your family, for supposedly killing your father, despite all logic and reasoning saying that the crime was impossible for him to commit?**

 **In the dub however, he wanted to defeat Yami and take the Puzzle, because once he wins it from him in a duel and combines its power with that of the Egyptians Gods, he'd be able to rule the world as the new pharaoh. Which, you know, honestly is a better reason for why he was constantly dueling Yami instead of, I don't know, shooting him full of bullet holes or something!**

 **And again with Raphael! In the dub, his family survived the storm that capsized the cruise ship they were on, but abandoned him. So if you say that when using the dub names of other characters, like Joey or Tristan, you are correct.**

 **In the original however, his family died, and Dartz made him dig up the skulls of his dead siblings (which is just so quizknaking morbid on so many levels). So if you say that, in the subbed version, Raphael saw humanity as evil because his family abandoned him, no it was because his family died.**

 **Again, props to the dubbers for changing character motivation to make it seem less stupid.**

 **I've honestly ranted about this for too long, so let me get back to the point: This version is the subbed continuity, and as such please refer to the characters by their original Japanese names and not those rather, iffy dub names.**

 **Above the Winter Moonlight: Thank you, and don't worry, the Fusion duo will be getting attention in just a few more chapters.**

 **Hyphen 101: Yeah, originally I was going to have the counterparts do a little movie night, but I decided against it. Mainly because I realized two things, A) It was mostly filled with way too obvious references, and B) Yuri was ruining it for everyone and it was not portraying him in the sympathetic light I wanted him in. So I decided to throw Ryuji/ Duke a bone and have his game be somewhat successful in universe. It was the better move, as both a mythology gag, and helps with how I'm writing Yuri.**

 **Speaking of which, I am glad you liked Yuri's character. He's still a little sarcastic and trollish, but in a more friendly and jokey way instead of insane and unremorseful. Also, expect a lot of his humor to come in the forms of an occasional snarky reference.**

 **Yuri: Why do I have to constantly be making snarky references?**

 **Because I need to constantly put them in my stories, and you are the best choice for the role.**

 **Oh, and Dennis, I am sorry I made Yuri call you Pennywise.**

 **Dennis: Well, thanks for comparing me to that sicko.**

 **Dennis you are nothing like that no good son of a *****. Unlike him I don't want to shoot you full of bullet holes, drop your corpse in the deepest, darkest pit I can find, sit back and enjoy your eternal damnation as your burn in the unholy fires of hell. Nor do I want to-!**

 ***We are experiencing technical difficulties. Please standby.***

 ***Panting* Whew, sorry 'bout that, almost lost my temper there.**

 **Anyway, I have dragged this chapter on for FAR longer than it was originally meant to be. I will be ending here, and wishing you all a good time until the next update, we're Yugo and Rin will be doing something….unexpected.**

 **See you soon!**


	10. Accelerating Winds

**WARNING: The following contains several card spoilers for Signs of Renewal, as well as a ridiculous gimmick that will never be repeated in this story again. If you do not like either of these, I suggest you either leave now, or wait until I do the next chapter, who knows how long the time gap will be.**

 **I could put in an "I don't own this" disclaimer, but at 10 chapters in, I think you all get the idea.**

* * *

If someone were to ask Yugo how he felt whenever he was having a Riding Duel, he'd describe the experience as exhilarating, being one with the wind in a way that was only possible to achieve while on a D-Wheel. The moment the countdown hit one, the rush as he accelerated on his D-Wheel, that clear state of mind he entered as he focused on battling with everything on the line… To Yugo there was no better feeling in the world.

Most of the time anyways. This was not one of those times.

"Battle!" Rin declared as she swirled her D-Wheel around to face Yugo. "Wind Witch – Diamond Bell, attack!"

Rin's monster began glowing as she held out her clawed hands and conjured up a storm of frigid winds. As they rushed towards his weakened monster, Yugo grimaced, seemingly having no way to counter. Just as the winds were about to hit…..

The image froze up and a pause icon appeared in the top right corner of the screen.

 _Yugo: Hey everyone, it's me, Yugo. Now I know you've all got a lot of questions on your mind, such as…._

 _*Change to a screenshot of Crow, Shinji, the kids, Jack and Carly watching the Duel from the sidelines.*_

 _Yugo: Why is Carly wearing a cowgirl outfit?_

 _*Screenshot of a billboard of Jack Atlas promoting the next Friendship Cup.*_

 _Yugo: Are we going to do the Friendship Cup again?_

 _*Screenshot of a campaign poster with Chojiro Tokumatsu's face on it.*_

 _Yugo: Will the legendary Enjoy Chojiro become the next mayor of the City?_

 _Rin: *Sigh, followed by a face palm* No Yugo, I think what they want to know is..._

 _*Screenshot of Yugo and Rin on D-Wheels as Rin's Diamond Bell attacks.*_

 _Rin: Why are we dueling…?_

 _*Screenshot of three monsters in blue columns of light.*_

 _Rin: …..When did we get Pendulums…?_

 _*Close up on Yugo and his D-Wheel.*_

 _Rin: How the heck did the D-Wheel we built together get repaired after, well, you know….._

 _*Insert clip of Arc V Episode 117 where Yugo falls off the tower and his D-Wheel breaks.*_

 _Rin: And why in the name of Horakhty are we doing this random, completely out-of-nowhere fourth-wall break?_

 _Yugo: Writer said that since he felt we were the least developed out of all the counterpart pairs, when we get our focus chapter, we can do whatever we wanted._

 _Rin: *unamused* And you chose to break the fourth wall?_

 _Yugo: Well I couldn't pick the opening parody, we did that last chapter! Besides, this is kinda fun._

 _Rin: Fine, but don't overdo it, and if we're going to do this, we need to start from the beginning. Go back so everyone else can get some context._

 _*Yugo rewinds the footage, going through various scenes that we don't have time to describe until he stops rewinding.*_

 _Zarc: IMA KOSO HITOTSU NI!_

 _Rin: Whoa, too far back! Go forward a little bit._

 _Yugo: *Stares*_

 _Rin: What?_

 _Yugo: Was that an intentional reference or am I just overanalyzing what you just said?_

 _Rin: FAST FORWARD ALREADY!_

 _Yugo: Okay okay! Calm down, I'm doing it!_

 _*Fast forward through a bunch more scenes, including some that are spoilers for later on.*_

 _Unknown: TOUGO SHOUKAN!_

 _Rin: Not that forward! Beside you remember what Writer said, we can't spoil_ _ **that**_ _! *Sighs* Here, let me do it._

 _*More rewinding until we arrive at the scene of the counterparts all going their separate ways*_

 _Rin: Okay, this is a good spot to start from._

 _Yugo: *voice drowning out the footage* Do we really have to rewatch this? We just did this like five minutes ago._

 _Rin: *continuing to talk as the two of them and their counterparts talk about Mayu* You know Yugo, you really have to work on your patience, or else one day you're seriously going to get into more trouble than usual._

 _Yugo: Name one time my lack of patience has gotten me into trouble?_

 _Rin: I have the remote, I can give you a whole clip show if I wanted to. Now let's just stop talking and watch for a while before this gets annoying._

 _Yugo: *whispering as he and Rin walked over to Tsukikage* This coming from you of all people?_

 _Rin: What was that?!_

 _Yugo: *terrified* Nothing!_

 _*The synchro duo wave at Yuya and Yuzu before vanishing in a puff of blue data.*_

…..

A bright blue light shined briefly, before disappearing to reveal the trio of Yugo, Rin and Tsukikage in its place. The three stood in front of Crow's place, a colorful banner with the words "Welcome Back!" written in what looked to be the handwriting of a child.

"Akaba Reiji-dono asked for me to bring the two of you here while we finish setting up your new home." Tsukikage explained, "Everything should be ready by tomorrow morning. In the meantime, Crow Hogan has agreed to let you stay for the night. Is this uncomfortable to either of you in any way?"

"Pfft, are you kidding me!? After living in the slums for so long, no living condition could bother me!" Yugo boasted.

"Everything will be fine, Tsukikage-san." Rin replied, "Tell Akaba Reiji we said thanks for even bothering to get us a home of our own in the first place."

"It's nothing. You are close to Sakaki Yuya-dono and Hiragi Yuzu-dono, the Leo Corporation will make sure you are well taken care of." The ninja said before teleporting back to his home dimension.

"I like him, he's cool."

"Yugo you barely know him."

"He's a ninja that means he's automatically cool!"

Rin rolled her eyes, unamused by how easily impressed Yugo could be at times. "Come on, everyone's waiting."

Beginning to walk up the stairs inside, Yugo and Rin began to wonder how people would react to them. Crow and the others had only ever seen Yugo in the Friendship Cup, meanwhile they had no idea what Rin looked like, apart from having the same facial structure as Yuzu and Serena. Rin felt a little discouraged, remembering how Yugo seemed to be the only one concerned about her during the Academia War.

It wasn't as if she didn't want to interact and form bonds with the people trying to stop Leo's well-intended-but-horribly-under-thought-and-selfish plan, and it was certainly not her fault for being kidnapped before the real fight could begin.

Although it probably didn't help her case that she only contributed one brief victory during the end game of the conflict, and to Academia no less. Normally Rin wasn't one to feel bad about winning duels, a win is a win after all, but considering the circumstances and the aftermath, there wasn't much to celebrate about that victory.

"You know they're totally going to jump out of nowhere and yell 'Surprise!' right?" Yugo asked, snapping Rin out of her depressed train of thought.

"Yeah, totally." Rin nodded, not really concerned with the idea of a welcome back party.

Low and behold, the moment Yugo opened the door, Crow, Jack, Shinji and the kids popped out from behind the furniture and yelled a combination of "Welcome Back!" and "Surprise!"

The Synchro counterparts chuckled nervously, not used to being the centers of attention. Still, it was nice to see people happy to going through the trouble of planning a party for them last minute.

"Were you surprised?" Amanda asked innocently.

"Of course." Rin answered, in reality thinking something amongs the lines of 'Not at all,' but she didn't want to make the little girl sad.

Yugo on the other hand seemed to put more effort into his performance. "Totally! You guys really shouldn't have done this!"

"Nonsense." Crow dismissed, handing the two guests of honor their drinks. "Any friend of Yuya and the Lancers is a cousin of mine."

"Indeed." Jack stepped forward, causing the two counterparts to feel a bit star struck. "We've heard good things about the two of you."

"Oh thank you King." Rin squealed. "It's such an honor to even be in your presence. This is like a dream right now!"

Rin's sudden, fangirlish outburst got more than a few looks of confusion

"Ahem. Sorry, it's just…" Rin began before Yugo interrupted.

"What she means to say is that, even though you lost the title of 'King,' it has always been our dream to duel against you Jack."

Jack smiled. "Don't make such a big deal. Besides, I must admit, I had been curious about you ever since the Friendship Cup, especially after dueling Yuya that third time, when he had used your dragon. You have a fine Ace Monster."

Yugo blushed as he began blubbering out something unintelligible, overcome with joy from Jack's praise.

Outside, Clear Wing, who was too big to fit inside the house, hung his head in embarrassment from Yugo's antics. _"This is one of the reasons why you should never meet your idols. You either make a fool of yourself or they turn out to be the opposite of what you imagined them to be."_

" _Don't feel bad for your human."_ Said the voice of another Duel Spirit. Clear Wing turned his head to see Jack's ace monster, Red Daemon's Dragon Scarlight, also watching the events inside. _"Jack and I are the most powerful combination of monster and duelist in this dimension, even if your master's look-alike holds the title of 'King."_

" _And I suppose I should be grateful that you are acknowledging me, Scarlight?"_ Clear Wing asked sarcastically. _"You forget, you aren't the only dragon left in the realms who has retained the Original Gene of the Firstborn."_

" _True, you and your brothers have managed to retain that power."_ Scarlight acknowledged. _"But we are some of the few dragons that still have it. Unlike you however, I have managed to tap into the Gene and reach a penultimate evolved form, whereas you and your brothers have barely tapped into it. Sort of embarrassing really."_ He chuckled lightly before disappearing.

Clear Wing snarled. Dragons were a proud race by nature, and insulting one's pride was a great offense. This was especially true amongst dragons such as himself and his brothers, who were dragons of the purist lineage. Back in the Spirit World, the punishment for such a crime would either be combat to the death or exile from all territory claimed by the dragons.

Still, as much as Clear Wing hated to admit it, Scarlight wasn't wrong when he said that he and his brothers had not managed to tap into their full potential. Both he and Dark Rebellion had the power to reach their evolved forms, whereas Starve Venom had taken a permanent evolution after….that fight over a hundred years ago.

Odd-Eyes, the youngest of the four of them, on the other claw, had been able to find a way to achieve multiple different evolved forms, and unlike the rest of them he was not bound to a single summoning method.

" _Perhaps from letting go of his thirst for revenge."_ Clear Wing scoffed. _"As if he ever had one to begin with. Despite the oldest and youngest of us being able to achieve such power, none of us have managed to achieve a higher stage of evolution. Greedy Venom technically, but only because of Scavenge Venom's evolving into Starve Venom. If we are even going to stand a chance against the coming threat, we and our masters must grow stronger…."_

Back inside, the Synchro duo were enjoying their welcome back. Yugo was talking to Jack and Crow, the three exchanging stories of previous duels while the kids listened on. Occasionally one of them would interrupt Crow with a comment about how skilled he was, causing the orange-haired duelist to feel flush.

Meanwhile, Rin was in the kitchen with Shinji, helping prepare dinner. The Bee Force user told her she didn't have to help, but the girl insisted. "I always helped with cooking back in the orphanage. With so many kids to feed, our caretaker needed an extra set of hands." She claimed.

Just as Rin was removing a chicken from the oven, the door slammed open, startling her and almost causing her to drop it. Turning around, she saw Jack's girlfriend, Carly, in the doorway looking out of breath.

And wearing a cowgirl outfit that made her look like Melissa Claire's long lost sister.

"Sorry I'm late." Carly panted, graciously accepting a glass of water from Shinji. "Journalist meeting ran a little long."

"That's fine Carly." Shinji said, eying her from head to toe with a look of bewilderment. "But what's with the outfit?"

 _Yugo: Do they have one in Rin's size?_

 _*THWACK*_

 _Yugo: OW!_

"Role association, don't ask." Carly dismissed as she exited the kitchen, immediately being bombarded by the kids, who gathered around her like a pack of wolves going after a doe.

Rin chuckled, amused by their energetic nature. "Alright kids, why don't you leave Carly alone and ask Yugo about the time he got his head stuck in a bucket for a whole day."

"What?" Frank laughed. "Did that really happen?"

"Ah-huh. And no, it wasn't an accident." Rin chuckled. "If you don't stop asking, he will tell you."

"Thanks Ruri." Tanner said as he and the other two headed in Yugo's direction, ready to bug him about that particular incident.

"It's Rin." Rin added sadly, knowing the kids wouldn't hear her.

"Thanks for the save." Carly said, grateful to have dodged a bullet. "I'm Carly by the way."

"I know." Rin said as she sat on a chair. "I was kinda there during the whole thing with the Security guy."

"Oh right." Carly slapped her forehead. "Sorry, I guess I'm still not entirely caught up on this whole lookalike thing."

"I don't blame you." Rin responded reassuringly. "Although I will tell you this in advance, never call Yugo 'Fusion.' It sets him off more than anything else in all four worlds."

"Or more." Carly added, causing Rin to raise a brow. "Jack told me about this whole Dark Dimension thing, in case they attack I can defend myself."

"You're a duelist?" Rin asked curiously. She knew not everyone in the world was a duelist (unlike Serena when she first left Academia), but Carly didn't seem like the type to duel, much less defend herself against a possible invasion.

"Well, I haven't dueled in some time, but Jack's been helping me catch-up." Carly blushed. "Just his way of helping me."

Now that the journalist brought up Jack, Rin felt the opportunity to ask something that had been bugging her a bit. "So, you and Jack, how exactly did that happen?"

Carly smiled, before gesturing for her to come closer. "It was about a month and a half ago. I got sent to interview him and, well after a rather embarrassing start, we ended up going to an amusement park."

Rin blinked. She didn't know the City had an amusement park. Probably added it after the restoration movement began.

"And any who, we ended up having to continue the interview later on, and we ended up hooking up." Carly finished cheerfully. The information had more than a few gaps in it, but Rin didn't wanna pry.

"So how about you?" Carly asked as Rin got herself a drink. "How long have you and Yugo been together?"

Rin froze before spitting out her drink and coughing, earning the attention of the other residents.

"Something wrong Rin?" A concerned Yugo called out.

"Yeah." Rin replied between coughs. "Carly just thought we were a couple, it's no big deal."

"You're not dating?" Crow asked. "I thought that since Yuya and Yuzu were dating, their counterparts would be as well."

Yugo attempted to speak up, only for Rin to shake her head. "No. Besides, Yugo and I would probably never become a couple. The two of us are strictly friends, we grew up in the same orphanage, so you understand why the two of us dating would feel a little incestuous. We're like siblings at most."

THUD!

"Are you okay lad?" Jack asked Yugo, who had fallen on his back after hearing Rin basically stick him in the dread 'Friend-zone.'

"Yeah, I just gotta go wash up, I think I slid on some juice." Yugo mumbled, feeling as if he just got shot full of arrows in his chest.

Carly laughed nervously. "Sorry about that. I just assumed from what I heard about the two of you that you'd started dating."

That got Rin's attention. "What do you mean? What did you hear?"

"Not much, just that Yugo spent months looking for you, that he entered the Friendship Cup so that way he could live out your dreams, that when he saw the Fusion one-what was his name, Yuki- he ran out of the Duel Palace to hunt him down and beat him up for kidnapping you. It actually cost him his place in the tournament." Carly explained, "Shame, he could have made it to the finals."

Rin was left speechless. She had heard from Yuzu and Serena that Yugo entered the Friendship Cup and didn't make it, but they didn't tell her it was because he gave it up for her. He had a chance to make their dream a reality, to finally get away from their poverty-stricken life and to duel the King himself….

And he gave it up so that he could keep searching for her….

Meanwhile in the bathroom, Yugo was pacing around, not sure how to process that Rin only saw him as a brother at most. He did have a crush on her, who wouldn't? Rin was kind, caring, smart, a great duelist, and knew how to handle herself if things got rough. The various bruises from when she hit him for saying and or doing something idiotic was proof of that.

And not to toot his own horn, but he was most of those things too, if a bit brash, hotheaded, simplistic, too quick to react whenever he heard the word 'Fusion'….okay he had a lot of things he needed to work on. But even if Rin only say him as a brother, it didn't mean she didn't care for him. Besides, if and when she started dating other guys, it's not like he would get upset and jealous….

Apart from the fact he was a little upset about Rin choosing Yuto as her game partner last night.

Okay he needed to tell her how he feels right now!

"Just gotta come out and say it." Yugo said, talking to his reflection. "Rin, I like you as more than just a friend, something more intimate. You're good looking, I'm gorgeous, and we've know each other a long time and, well, I thought that if I go through with this it'll ruin our friendship, AUGH!"

Yugo kicked a garbage can, knocking it over and spilling out the contents within. "It's hopeless! Back then I thought I at least had a chance with her, and now I've been Nakama-zoned without even getting rejected. Wait, why was that good?"

A knock came from the other side of the door. "Yugo?" It was Rin. "Are you okay in there? You sound upset?"

Wiping away the sweat from his forehead, Yugo replied. "Yeah, totally fine." Except he wasn't.

"Good, because I wanna duel you, right now!"

….

Despite the shock from her sudden order of dueling right now, Yugo agreed to duel her. He couldn't say no to dueling, especially against Rin. And no, not because of his crush, but because on a rating scale of one-to-ten the average number of times he's defeated Rin, his rate was a measly two.

Besides, a duel would help him clear his mind. Especially after the kids suggested they have a Riding Duel.

So the group left Crow's place and headed to the Duel Palace, now renovated and open to the public. Rin did take a brief moment to switch into her pink and white riding attire first, but they were ready almost immediately.

And when they got to the garage, they saw a shocking, but welcomed sight. The D-Wheel they had built together-the one that Rin had destroyed while under the Doktor's control-was standing in the middle of the room looking completely brand new.

"How?" Yugo asked through the tears of joy. "How'd you fix Rin-Go?"

"Reiji had it picked up after the War and sent it over to me in case you both ended up being corporeal again and-" Crow began explaining before realizing what Yugo called the bike. "Wait, you named your D-Wheel Apple?" ( _Ringo=Apple_ )

"NO!" Yugo objected. "Not Ringo, Rin-Go! We couldn't decide what to call it so we named it after both of us!"

 _Yugo: In some ways it's kinda like our kid._

 _*THWACK*_

After a brief argument about who would ride the repaired Rin-Go, they agreed that Yugo would take it, seeing as how he preferred dueling on it even when it was unnecessary. Rin, on the other hand, took a standard issue one, colored light pink with mint green trimming and a white board on the front.

With that all out of the way, Yugo and Rin went down to the trackway as the countdown began. The two duelists briefly locked eyes, revving their D-Wheels as both they and their audience stood in the stands, waiting for the duel to start.

3…2…1

GO!

The instant the countdown finished, both Rin and Yugo slammed on their bikes' accelerators before shooting forward in a burst of speed. The two were neck and neck, neither rider giving so much as a hint of hesitation as they approached the starting line. With a sneaky smirk plastered on his face, Yugo leaned his bike to the side before using the curve of the trackway wall to launch himself into the air.

"What!" Rin sputtered in disbelief, the spectators looking just as stunned.

Spinning through the air like Clear Wing's signature attack, Yugo managed to overtake Rin's lead as he crashed in front of the starting point first, Rin trailing a few feet behind.

"DUEL!" The Synchro Duelists shouted as they drew their opening hands.

 **Yugo**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **VS.**

 **Rin**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

"That was totally wicked!" The star struck trio of Frank, Tanner and Amanda proclaimed.

"And I thought I did some crazy stunts on my D-Wheel." Jack muttered, impressed by Yugo's risky gamble.

"And this is why I'm never getting on a D-Wheel." Carly chuckled nervously, sweat dripping from her hair onto her forehead. "Way too many risks."

"The first move is mine!" Yugo declared as he started his turn. "Since I control no cards, I can activate Speed Draw! I draw two cards, just so long as I discard a Speedroid monster from my hand afterwards."

Yugo drew his cards, before smiling once he saw what they were. "YOSHA! This is just what I need. And per the effect of Speed Draw, I send Speedroid Den-Den Daiko Duke from my hand to the Graveyard.

"And now Rin," Yugo continued as he revealed the two cards he drew, "Time for you to see some new tricks, courtesy of yours truly. With the Scale 3 Speedroid Passinglider and Scale 8 Speedroid Domino Butterfly, I set the Pendulum Scale!"

Two columns of ethereal blue lights appeared to the left and right of Yugo's D-Wheel. In the left column was a grey and blue airplane-shaped glider being piloted by a robotic figure, while a black, white and yellow colored robot with black and white domino wings hovered in the column in the right column. Both mechanical monsters hovered over a glowing number, '3' and '8' respectively.

"So, you've gotten Pendulum as well," Rin muttered to herself before looking at her own hand and smiling. "Let's see how you'll use it."

"With this, I can summon monsters with Levels four through seven!" Yugo continued as a giant pendulum, similar to that of Yuya's except colored a crystal white, began swinging between the two columns of light.

"Swing! Pendulum of the Wind! Accelerate under the arc of light and break through the limits at the speed of sound! Pendulum Shoukan! Come forth, my monster!" Yugo chanted as a portal opened up from the circle drawn by the arc of the pendulum before a single orb of light emerged and landed on the ground. The light dispersed to reveal a blue vehicle that resembled a go-kart with three iron pachinko balls for wheels.

 **Speedroid Pachingo-Kart:** _ **1800 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Machine/ Effect**

"He only Pendulum Summoned one monster?" A puzzled Shinji asked. "Why would he set up his Scales just to only summon that single monster?"

"Most likely it was the only monster he had whose Level was above that of Passinglider's scale." Crow guessed, not bothering to look at his friend as he continued watching the duel.

"And now," Yugo continued, "Since I didn't use my Normal Summon, I'll use it to summon this familiar set of eyes. Speedroid Tri-Eyed Dice!"

Yugo's four-sided pyramid dice appeared to the field, slowly rotating as the rocket boosters on its base propelled it forward.

 **Speedroid Tri-Eyed Dice:** _ **300 ATK**_ **/ 1500 DEF/ WIND/ Level 3/ Machine/ Tuner/ Effect**

"A Tuner, and with that combination of Levels," Observed Rin, who figured out what Yugo was about to do next.

"I Tune Level four Pachingo-Kart with Level three Tri-Eyed Dice!" Yugo declared, holding his hand skyward as his Tuner transformed into a trio of rings, his other monsters morphing into a cluster of four stars.

"Spread those wondrous and beautiful wings and strike down our enemies at the speed of light!" Yugo chanted. "Synchro Shoukan! Arawarero, Level Seven! Clear Wing Synchro Dragon!"

With a mighty roar, Yugo signature white, black and blue cybernetic dragon appeared, its green transparent wings reflecting the sun's rays. Racing alongside his ace monster once more, Yugo couldn't help but feel a sense of joy bubble up inside him.

 **Clear Wing Synchro Dragon:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ WIND/ level 7/ Dragon/ Synchro/ Effect**

"Whew! It is good to see you again buddy!" Yugo cried out joyfully, earning a roar back from Clear Wing.

" _Yeah! I missed the feeling of Dueling with the wind beneath my wings!"_ Clear Wing declared, despite knowing that no one could understand him. _"So much time has passed I've felt I'd forget what it was like to duel with the wind."_

Despite not understanding his dragon's words, Yugo could feel his partner had similar feelings to his own.

"Turn end." Yugo declared, keeping a single card in his hand.

"Already getting Clear Wing out on the first turn I see." Rin spoke, a hint of disappointment staining her tone. She was hoping to have seen Yugo pull out something different instead of his usual monsters.

"You bet!" Yugo replied enthusiastically. "With Pendulum Summoning in my arsenal now, you can't beat me ever again!"

Rin rolled her eyes as Yugo slowed down so that they were racing at the same speed. "Answer me this Yugo. Between us and our counterparts, how many do we know of that have Pendulums?"

"Oh, well there's me, Yuya, Yuri, Yuzu and Serena. So five out of eight." Yugo replied, caught off guard by Rin's question.

"So what makes you think that between the two of us, only you have Pendulums now?" Rin asked with a smug smirk.

"WHAT!? You mean to tell me that-" Yugo cried out, only for Rin to ignore him as she accelerated, taking the lead in the duel.

"My turn. DRAW! Rin proclaimed. Smiling at the card she had drawn, she continued with her turn.

"You really should have seen this next part coming Yugo." Rin mused with a smile. "Using the Scale 0 Wind Witch – Frost Bell and the Scale 5 Wind Witch – Iceberg Bell, I set the Pendulum Scale!"

The two columns of light appeared at Rin's side, a pair of witches hovering within each pillar. Frost Bell was a girl with a dark tan complexion decorated with freckles, short white hair with a single strand of blue, a black suit decorated with white patterns like the leafy frost patterns on windows, and a silver bell broomstick with similar patterns, glowing a deep magical purple. Underneath her was the number '0'.

Opposite of Frost Bell was a girl who, rode atop the back of a massive golem made out of ice, hovering above a glowing '5'. She had glowing ice-blue eyes and deep lilac hair, with fluorescent highlights that were the same color as her eyes. Iceberg Bell wielded a large staff, tipped with a pointy chunk of ice.

"Rin has Pendulums too!" Amanda cried out, excited to see two Pendulum/Synchro users go at it.

"So that makes six of them who can use Pendulum." Carly whispered to herself, making sure no one had heard her.

Yugo stared at Rin's new cards in shock for a few seconds more before snapping out of it. "Whew, did not see that one coming." He chuckled, secretly wishing that Rin didn't have Pendulums. He was hoping that his new use of said cards would slow Rin down, only for his hopes to be shattered on the Duel's second turn.

Rin took a second to look back at Yugo. While she did feel bad for upsetting him, she was most certainly not going to baby him and apologize for improving her deck.

"With this, I can summon monsters with Levels one through four!" Rin declared as a pendulum with a light green crystal began swaying back and forth. "Bells echoing throughout the glistening midwinter winds! Harmonize with the arc of light and resonate across this frozen land! Pendulum Shoukan! Ideyo, watashi no monster-tachi! Wind Witch – Snow Bell! And also, Wind Witch – Fog Bell!"

A pink portal opened up between the two witches before a pair of pink and green lights streamed out and descended to the ground. Both lights disappeared on impact, the first revealing a white and gold bell with fluffy wings and a sapphire-tipped crown decorating the handle.

 **Wind Witch – Snow Bell:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Spellcaster/ Tuner/ Effect**

The second light faded away to unveil a petite blonde-haired girl wearing a small green witch hat, a blue leotard and clear tutu, and a cape made out of a pale mist. Riding around on a brass bell-shaped broomstick that was a tad big for her, the small witch giggled as the bell blew out a thick cloud of fog.

 **Wind Witch – Fog Bell:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Spellcaster/ Effect**

"Fog Bell no kouka!" Rin continued, stretching her hand towards her monster. "When she is Special Summoned, I can add one Wind Witch or Bell Chime Spell or Trap card from my Deck or Graveyard to my hand." She explained as a card popped out from in between her deck.

Yugo felt himself wince as Rin revealed the card. "Cemetery-Wind Bell Chime. You just had to search that card."

"So you remember what it does. Good." Rin smirked, before gesturing to one of the cards in her Pendulum Zone. "Iceberg Bell's Pendulum Effect! Once per turn, I can target and Special Summon one Wind Witch from my Pendulum Zone. I use this effect and target Frost Bell in my other Pendulum Zone!"

Iceberg Bell held out her staff and pointed it at Frost Bell, who exited the column of light as it disappeared, before the white-haired witch lowered herself so that she was riding alongside Rin.

 **Wind Witch – Frost Bell:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 500 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ P.S. 0/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"And now that everyone is here, I can do this!" Rin shouted proudly. "I Tune my Level one Frost, Fog and Snow Bells!"

Just as with Yugo's monsters, Snow Bell transformed into a single ring as Rin's remaining two monsters flew through it and vanished, leaving only two stars as Rin chanted.

"Ancient frozen winds, grow and harden into an impenetrable wall! Synchro Shoukan! Let the wind ring against your frozen heart! Level Three! Wind Witch - Glacier Bell!"

Racing through the sky on frigid winds, a hood-ornament shaped ice sprite appeared beside Rin. She appeared similar to Rin's Winter Bell, however this one was smaller, with a slender figure and wide bell-shaped hips. Glacier Bell's head was somewhat pyramid shaped, with a rounded face, and her fin-like arms were massive semi-circles made entirely of pure, glacial ice.

 **Wind Witch – Glacier Bell: 900 ATK/** _ **2500 DEF**_ **/ WIND/ Level 3/ Spellcaster/ Synchro/ Tuner/ Effect**

"And since Frost Bell was removed from the field, her monster effect allows me to place her back in my Pendulum Zone." Rin explained as the frosty witch reappeared in a column of light beside her D-Wheel.

" _A Pendulum Summon, followed by a Synchro Summon and then resetting her Pendulum Scales. Rin has certainly become even stronger than the last time she and Yugo fought."_ Clear Wing thought to himself before shuddering. _"Note to self: Never repeat that to anyone, especially Winter Bell. She'll never let me hear the end of it."_

"Finally, I set two cards face down and end my turn." Rin finished. "I'm sure you remember Glacier Bell's effect Yugo."

"Don't remind me." Yugo groaned as he drew a card. "And since you used three monsters as Material, you can get the most use out of her effects."

Looking at what he had in his hand, Yugo felt a plan begin to bubble up in his banana-decorated head.

 _Yugo: You just had to squeeze that banana remark in, didn't you?_

 _Rin: It's not his fault the Arc V character designers made you look like a berry-blast smoothie._

 _Yugo: What? I can kinda get that, I mean my head looks like a blueberry, by why the berry blast comment._

 _Rin: Bananas are a berry._

 _Yugo: My mind is blown. Okay enough commentary, back to the duel._

"With the already set Pendulum Scale, I Pendulum Summon!" Yugo declared as another single orb of light plummeted out of the trademark pink portal. "Speedroid Hex-Eyed Dice!"

Rising up from where the light descended was an orange ten-sided, each face decorated by a number of runes equal to what would be the value of that side.

 **Speedroid Hex-Eyed Dice:** _ **500 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 5/ Machine/ Tuner/ Effect**

"Hex-Eyed Dice's effect activates upon summoning!" Yugo shouted as one of the faces of his dice monster opened up before a single card flew out. "I add a Speedroid monster from my Deck to my hand. I use this effect to add OMK Gum!"

Rin's eyes narrowed. With OMK Gum, Yugo could Synchro Summon during the Battle Phase, so he was planning on somehow taking damage. "What are you up to Yugo," she quietly asked herself.

"And now," Yugo continued, taking the card he had saved last turn, "I Normal Summon Speedroid Beigomax!"

Appearing through a blue portal besides Yugo's bike was a chain of thirteen tops, the one at the front armed with two blades that resembled the mandibles of a centipede.

 **Speedroid Beigomax:** _ **1200 ATK**_ **/ 600 DEF/ WIND/ Level 3/ Machine/ Effect**

"Now with that outta the way, I think it's time I reintroduced you to an old friend Rin." Yugo smirked, causing Rin's eyes to widen as she realized what monster he was about to summon. "I tune Level Three Speedroid Beigomax with Level Five Hex-Eyed Dice!"

Hex-Eyed Dice rotated 360 before transforming into a group of five green rings that neatly stacked atop of one another. Flying through the rings, Beigomax faded from view as it was replaced by a trio of stars.

"Thousand blocks combine!" Yugo chanted as power surged between the rings. "With your unified power, become an invincible warrior! Synchro Shoukan! Arawayo, Reberu Hachi! Hi-Speedroid Legolancer!"

The power from the Summon was so strong that the stars and rings exploded in a flash of light so bright that Rin was forced to cover her eyes. Removing her cover, Rin looked up to see a new monster standing beside Clear Wing. It was a powerful robotic warrior made entirely from, as the name implied, colorful Lego blocks, a massive lance made out of the same blocks in one of its hand. The female Riding Duelist grimaced. While Yugo hade rarely ever beaten her, this monster had always shown up whenever he did win one of those duels.

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer:** _ **2800 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 8/ Machine/ Synchro/ Effect**

"Since Hex-Eyed Dice was used in its Synchro Summon," Yugo explained, "The effect that Legolancer inherited from it allows me to draw two cards."

Smiling, Yugo's mind began envisioning the perfect way to deal with Rin's defenses.

"Battle! Hi-Speedroid Legolancer attacks your Glacier Bell!" Yugo ordered, causing his brick soldier to dash towards Rin's ice sprite, who raised her massive ice arms together, forming a defensive shield of ice.

"Iceberg Bell's Pendulum Effect can be used during either of our turns!" Rin revealed. "I use this effect to Summon Iceberg Bell from my Pendulum Zone!"

Iceberg Bell pointed her staff down towards the field, seemingly ordering her golem mount to carry her down. When she did not move however, the witch looked down to see the golem had fallen asleep. Rolling her icy-blue eyes, Iceberg Bell whacked her mount with her staff, awakening the golem in a flash, before gesturing downwards. Now fully awake, the golem jumped out of the pillar of blue light and landed between Legolancer and Glacier Bell, causing the brick warrior to backtrack.

 **Wind Witch – Iceberg Bell: 2000 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ WIND/ Level 5/ Scale 5/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Since Iceberg Bell is on my field," Explained Rin, "She is now the only monster you can attack! And you know what that means, right Yugo?"

Yugo scoffed lightly. "I figured as much. Well then, might as well get this next part over with. Legolancer, attack Iceberg Bell instead!"

Regaining his composer, Legolancer resumed his attack, only now pointing his weapon at the golem-riding witch. He was stopped once again however, when Glacier Bell placed herself in between the battling monsters, ice shield raised, and blocked the tip of Legolancer's lance, causing a few bricks to chip off of the Lego monster.

"What happened?" Tanner questioned from the sidelines.

Crow looked at the screen of his Duel Disk, and brought up the image of Glacier Bell's card. "It says here that Glacier Bell can protect Rin's Wind Witches from being destroyed by sending another Wind Witch from her Deck to the Graveyard instead." His eyes widened as her read the next part. "And she can use it multiple times per turn, up to the number of Synchro Materials use in her Synchro Summon!"

"Rin used three monsters to summon Glacier Bell!" Amanda exclaimed.

"So if Yugo wants to get rid of any of her monsters, he needs to get Rin to use that effect two more times." Frank added, displeased that Rin had a strong protection effect.

"I'm gonna take a wild guess and say Iceberg Bell still has her other effects from before. Am I right, please don't let me be right?" Yugo squeaked.

"Oh no, you're on the nose." Rin rolled her eyes before stretching her hand towards Iceberg Bell. "Since Iceberg Bell battled, her other effect activates! The effects of Legolancer are negated, and as an added bonus you take 1000 damage!"

"Clear Wing Synchro Dragon no kouka!" Yugo countered as the circuitry patterns on Clear Wing's wings began lighting up. "Since a Level five or higher monster activated its effect, Clear Wing negates that effect, destroys that monster and gains ATK equal to that monster's ATK! Ikay, Clear Wing! Dichroic Mirror!"

Iceberg Bell held out her staff towards Legolancer before launching the icy tip towards the monster like a bullet. Wings now charged with energy, Clear Wing unleashed a blinding light that melted the ice mid-shot, before traveling towards the frightened Iceberg bell.

"I use Glacier Bell's effect again!" Rin cried, causing her Synchro Tuner to once again raise her icy wall and place itself between Clear Wing's powerful effect and the scared witch. "I send another Wind Witch from my Deck to my Graveyard in order to prevent Iceberg Bell's destruction!"

Yugo clicked his teeth in annoyance. "Since Iceberg Bell's effect was negated, Legolancer's ATK doesn't change. But since it wasn't destroyed, Clear Wing doesn't gain ATK. But that doesn't matter! Clear Wing Synchro Dragon, attack Iceberg Bell!"

With a mighty roar, Clear Wing ascended atop the racing duelists, before the patterns on his crystalline wings began shining once more.

"Quick-Play Spell, Desperate Dice Battle!" Cried Yugo as his monster began descending at high speeds, enveloped by a green twister. "When a monster I control battles my opponent's monster, I can roll a dice and apply an effect depending on the result. If I get an odd number, Iceberg bell loses a 1000 ATK and cannot activate its effects. However the same is true in reverse if the result is even."

"Quite the gamble you're taking," Rin remarked. "Iceberg Bell is in Defense Position, so I won't take damage either way. But if the odds are in your favor, you won't take damage from Iceberg Bells effect."

" _Of course_ ," she whispered to herself, " _You have both Legolancer on your field and OMK Gum in your hand, so you can either take damage and bring out Crystal Wing or negate the damage at the cost of Legolancer's ATK. But no matter the outcome, Glacier Bell's effects would be all used up for the turn_."

Rin sighed. "Good move, but not exactly something new."

A six-sided dice materialized in front of Yugo's bike before launching into the air. The die rolled a few times before seemingly landing on five….

"Come on, papa needs a new deck of cards." Yugo cried, praying to whatever Gods of Luck who could think of at the moment.

If those Gods were real, they ignored him. Because the dice landed on two.

"SON OF A-!" Yugo cursed, before sighing heavily. "Clear Wing loses 1000 ATK and cannot activate his effects."

 **Clear Wing Synchro Dragon: 2500 – 1000 = 1500 ATK**

"I use Glacier Bell's effect one final time to protect Iceberg Bell from destruction!" Rin proclaimed as her monster once again protected Iceberg Bell with her shield fins, halting Clear Wing's attack.

"Of course, now Iceberg Bell's effect activates! Clear Wing's effects are negated and you take 1000 points of damage!" Rin exclaimed, "Take this!"

The golem Iceberg Bell rode roared loudly, sending a wave of frigid winds forward that caused Clear Wing to become covered in snow and ice, while forcing Yugo to cover himself with his arm.

 **Yugo LP: 4000 – 3000**

Recovering from Iceberg Bell's effect, Yugo grabbed a card. "I've taken your effects so many times I can hardly feel them anymore! And since I took damage during the Battle Phase, I can Special Summon this little bugger! Speedroid OMK Gum!"

A grey robot with a large rectangular box on its back that resembled a pack of gum appeared besides Yugo.

 **Speedroid OMK Gum: 0 ATK/** _ **800 DEF**_ **/ WIND/ Level 1/ Machine/ Tuner/ Effect**

"OMK Gum no kouka!" Yugo continued, "Since it was Special Summoned, I can use its effect to Synchro Summon immediately afterwards. I tune Level seven Clear Wing Synchro Dragon and Level one OMK Gum!"

OMK Gum vanished from the field, leaving behind a single ring that enveloped Clear Wing as the white dragon faded away and transformed into seven stars as Yugo chanted.

"Shine the wings that store the holy light, and strike down your enemies with its radiance! Synchro Shoukan! Ideyo, Level Eight! Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon!"

In a flash of light, Clear Wing's evolved formed took flight. Crystalline wings and armor shining with light, the dragon of the Synchro Dimension roared proudly for all to hear.

 **Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon:** _ **3000 ATK**_ **/ 2500 DEF/ WIND/ Level 8/ Dragon/ Synchro/ Effect**

"It's here!" The trio of Frank, Amanda and Tanner joyfully exclaimed upon seeing Crystal Wing.

"Amazing," Carly whispered. "Actually seeing the dragon's evolved form, it's different than I imagined."

"Did you say something Carly?" Asked Jack.

"I-I said that it was amazing that Yugo planned this far ahead, seeing as how he searched that Tuner beforehand." Carly replied, albeit somewhat nervously.

"I must give the lad credit, he may look similar to Yuya, and while their styles are different, I can detect the same soul and love for dueling they share." Jack admitted, "But let's see if that is enough to overcome Rin."

"The final effect of OMK Gum activates," Yugo explained, "I send the top card of my to the Graveyard, and it that monster is a Speedroid, then Crystal Wing will gain 1000 ATK."

Placing the tips of his fingers atop his Deck, Yugo prayed, "Answer me, my Deck," before turning over the top card.

"YOSHA!" The banana head joyfully exclaimed. "The card is a Speedroid monster, meaning Crystal Wing now gains 1000 ATK!"

 **Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon: 3000 + 1000 = 4000 ATK**

"Battle!" Yugo shouted, "Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon attacks Iceberg Bell! And don't forget Crystal Wing gains your monsters ATK since she's Level five, and you've already used Glacier Bell's effect three times this turn!"

 **Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon: 4000 + 2000 = 6000**

"True, but Iceberg Bell is in Defense Position," Rin countered. "Meaning that even if she is destroyed, I don't take the damage.

 _Yugo: Really?_

 _Rin: It's not my fault people are physical incapable of resisting the urge to say "But you still take the damage." Consider this a new twist on a tired old cliché._

"Crystallos Edge of Gale!" Yugo shouted as his dragon impaled the golem Iceberg Bell rode on, causing a massive explosion that sent Rin spiraling, allowing Yugo to overtake the lead.

"Please tell me she didn't do what I think she did." Yugo whispered before turning his head around, only for his worries to come true. "I hate it when I'm right."

Rin and Glacier Bell emerged from the smoke caused by Crystal Wing's attack, only now there were two cards face-up in her Spell/Trap Zone, one of which depicted multiple wind-chimes ringing forlornly over a snow-covered cemetery, several unmarked graves decorated with wreaths and bells.

In addition, she was accompanied by a female monster with long wavy blue hair, wearing an outfit of thick white furs covered with black spots, which gave off the impression of slush spotted with snow. She rode on an icy bell-tipped broomstick, water dripping from the sides, and in her hand she carried a long staff forged from snow and liquid water.

 **Wind Witch – Slush Bell:** _ **1800 ATK**_ **/ 1800 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Spellcaster/ Effect**

"Before Iceberg Bell was destroyed, I activated my two set cards, Wind-Echoing Bell Chime and Cemetery-Wind Bell Chime!" Rin explained, "The first one allows me to target a Wind Witch I control in order to Special Summon another Wind Witch from my Graveyard with an equal or lower Level. I targeted Iceberg Bell in order to summon Slush Bell, who I sent to the Graveyard with Glacier Bell's effect. And since she was Special Summoned, her effect allows me to add a Wind Witch from my Graveyard, face-up in my Extra Deck, or one that's banished to my hand and inflict damage to you equal to that monster's Level times 200. I use this effect to recover Iceberg Bell and now you take a 1000 damage!"

"As if!" Yugo countered, gesturing towards Legolancer. "This is exactly why I Summoned Legolancer. Since I would take battle or effect damage, Legolancer reduces the damage to zero at the cost of lowering its ATK and DEF by the same amount! I'm not taking those burn tactics today Rin!"

Slush Bell raised her staff and conjured up a magic circle, which launched a bunch of slushy snowballs towards Yugo. At the last second however, Legolancer intercepted the snowballs' path, held out his left wrist as the blocks that made up his arms reshaped themselves into a blocky shield. The snow hit the shield, and while a few blocks were knocked off, the damage didn't hit Yugo.

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer: 2800 – 1000 = 1800 ATK/ 2000 – 1000 = 1000 DEF**

Rin rolled her eyes, she had expected Yugo to counter her monster's effect. "The effect of Wind-Echoing Bell Chime activated upon Iceberg Bell's destruction, allowing me to add another Wind Witch from my Deck to my hand. I add Wind Witch – Frozen Bell."

 _Yugo: *snicker snicker*_

 _Rin: If so much as think about making that joke again, I'll -_

 _Yugo: Not my fault! The resemblance is uncanny!_

Yugo whipped his brow, so far the Duel was nothing more than a stalemate. Of course, seeing as how they basically memorized each other's Decks at this point, it was to be expected. Even adding Pendulum Summoning to his arsenal hadn't slowed Rin down.

"I set a card and end my turn." Yugo finished, throwing a face-down as he rounded a corner on his bike. "You may have been able to counter my moves this time, but I know your Deck like the back of my hand Rin! At this rate, I'll win this duel!"

"What's that old saying Yugo? It's not over until the last card is played." Rin called out from behind Yugo. "Besides, up until now, you've done everything I expected you to do!"

Yugo blinked. "What's that supposed to me?"

"I mean, you've done nothing out of the ordinary for you! It's time this duel takes an unexpected twist. Watashi no turn," she declared, "DRAW!"

"I tribute Slush Bell in order to Tribute Summon Iceberg Bell!" Rin shouted as her golem-riding witch came back.

 **Wind Witch – Iceberg Bell:** _ **2000 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Level 5/ P.S. 5/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Now, since I control a WIND monster," Rin continued, picking up the card she added to her hand prior, "I can Special Summon this monster! Arawayo, Wind Witch – Frozen Bell!"

Through the blue summoning portal, a witch with brown and white hair tied into a braid came riding on a pure white broomstick that had a pair of large icy fins on the sides.

 **Wind Witch – Frozen Bell:** _ **800 ATK**_ **/ 800 DEF/ WIND/ Level 2/ Spellcaster/ Tuner/ Effect**

 _Yugo: I see someone's getting in touch with their inner Disney Princess. *laughter*_

 _Rin: UGH! You just HAD to make that joke, didn't you!_

"Frozen Bell's effect!" Rin declared, "Since she was Special Summoned this turn, I can draw a card and you take 500 damage!"

"Legolancer no kouka!" Yugo countered as Legolancer's wrist once again transformed into a shield. "The damage is negated and my monster loses ATK and DEF equal to that amount!"

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer: 1800 – 500 = 1300 ATK/ 1000 – 500 = 500 DEF**

"Now's the time!" Rin declared, stretching out her hand towards her two monsters. "I tune Level five Iceberg Bell and Level two Frozen Bell, in order to Synchro Summon!"

Racing ahead on her broomstick, Frozen Bell laughed before transforming into two translucent green rings, swirling around Iceberg Bell as she faded into five white stars.

"Midwinter wind. Make ice and snow my power and blow through! Synchro Shoukan! Arawareyo, Level Seven! Wind Witch – Winter Bell!"

Gliding on freezing air currents with her fin-like arms, Rin's ace monster, an ice-blue, water-blue and green-blue hood ornament shaped ice-sprite with a rounded bell-shaped abdomen decorated by a snowflake pattern, an elongated head, and a long ice-chunk like tail appeared, riding alongside Rin as the air around her began to grow colder.

 **Wind Witch – Winter Bell:** _ **2400 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 7/ Spellcaster/ Synchro/ Effect**

"Pretty," Amanda murmured, in awe of the sight of Winter Bell's elegant form.

" _Ah,"_ Winter Bell chimed, enjoying the feeling of the winds around her. _"It has been far too long since I experienced the winds underneath my wings. The tranquility is so refreshing."_

" _Don't make this weird Winter Bell."_ Crystal Wing called out, turning his head around to look at the newly summoned monster, _"This is a Duel, not a therapy session."_

" _Oh Crystal Wing,"_ Winter Bell rolled her eyes, _"Despite us both being of the wind, you still insist on seeing only their power and speed. That lack of depth perception is why you and Yugo have trouble defeating me and Rin. Until you connect with the true strength of…"_

" _And the talking airplane lady is monologuing."_ Crystal Wing groaned while Winter Bell continued to talk. _"Still, can't be any worse than dealing with Yuya and his irritating 'Smile' philosophy."_

While their monsters continued to bicker, Yugo looked at Rin's field. "She's got Winter Bell out, and with Frozen Bell in her Graveyard, she can use Winter Bell to use that draw effect all over again." He whispered to himself, attempting to predict Rin's next move.

"Cemetery-Wind Bell Chime's effect!" Rin continued as her Trap lit up. "By targeting Winter Bell, I can Special Summon a Wind Witch monster from my Graveyard so long as it is Level seven or lower! Revive, Snow Bell!"

The blue and white bell monster reappeared on the field, emerging from a black magic circle on the trackway.

 **Wind Witch – Snow Bell:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Spellcaster/ Tuner/ Effect**

"Since you brought out your Ace Monster and evolved it," Rin proclaimed as she sped up, "I think it's only fair I do the same! I tune Level seven Winter Bell with Level one Snow Bell for another Synchro Summon!"

Both of Rin's monsters faded from view, Snow Bell leaving a single Synchro ring behind while Winter Bell transformed into a line of seven stars that neatly lined up through the ring, Rin chanting in the background as a gust of cold winds swelled up.

"Elegant bell of winter, against the harsh and cold winds crystallize into a beautiful new strength and echo through the icy winds! Synchro Shoukan! Ascend to the pinnacle of the winter storm! Level Eight! Wind Witch – Diamond Bell!"

In a maelstrom of snow-filled icy winds, Rin's evolved Synchro Monster, a massive ice-sprite appeared. Diamond Bell had a slender build, with the same broad shoulders, well-developed bust, bell-shaped hips as the corrupted Crystal Bell, although the Synchro monster was more angular, almost like a diamond. Unlike the vague, mask like faces of Winter Bell and Crystal Bell, Diamond Bell's was more defined, was topped by a diamond crown, and covered by a clear visor. Six large, translucent fins were affixed to her back, so cold to the touch that the air around them had begun to freeze up. The jet wing-like fins that were her arms had a humanoid hand at the end, fingers tipped with diamond-like claws and snowflake runes inscribed on the palms. The diamond-shaped ringer hitting against the sides of her bell hips, Diamond Bell whirled around before a burst of snowy wind shot out from her fins as she flew besides Rin.

 **Wind Witch – Diamond Bell:** _ **2800 ATK**_ **/ 3000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 8/ Spellcaster/ Synchro/ Effect**

"I guess it's true what they say, diamonds _are_ a girl's best friend," Carly joked. "Although in this case, it looks like they're also Yugo's worst enemy."

"But Crystal Wing has higher ATK." Shinji reminded, "Right now, Diamond Bell is still weaker."

"Don't underestimate Duelists of their caliber." Jack remarked, a hint of annoyance at Shinji's impression of strength. "Rin wouldn't summon that monster unless she knew how to use it."

"Diamond Bell no kouka!" Rin exclaimed as her monster began glowing, "For every monster in both of our Graveyards, Diamond Bell gains an additional 100 ATK and DEF! We both have seven monsters in our Graveyards, so Diamond Bell gains 1400 ATK and DEF!"

 **Wind Witch – Diamond Bell: 2800 + 1400 = 4200 ATK/ 3000 + 1400 = 4400 DEF**

"4200!" Cried Yugo, eyes widening as the ATK of Rin's monster jumped over Crystal Wing's ATK. "And since Crystal Wing's other effect will allow it to gain that ATK if they battle…"

"Then Diamond Bell will attack the weakened Legolancer instead, yes." Rin smirked as she finished Yugo's train of thought. "You heard him Diamond Bell, attack Legolancer!"

The angular witch held out her hands towards Yugo's toy robot, snowflake runes on her palms glowing as she conjured up a massive tornado of icy wind that caused ice to appear on the sides of the trackways.

"Tri-Eyed Dice no kouka!" Yugo exclaimed, "By banishing this card from my Graveyard, you attack is nega - !"

"You're gonna have to do better than that Yugo!" Rin countered, holding up a card for Yugo to see. "Since you activated a card effect while I control a Wind Witch, I can discard Wind Witch – Hail Bell from my hand in order to negate that effect and destroy it, meaning the attack goes through!"

A ghostly image of Yugo's dice monster appeared, the three black orbs around it beginning to form a triangular energy barrier as the spirit of another one of Rin's Wind Witches appeared. Hail Bell had long scarlet hair, a dark black suit and cape, with a white witch hat tipped with a white bobble on the end that resembled a piece of hail. The redheaded witch held a long wand tipped with a piece of clear hail and a thin, long broomstick tipped by a clear, hail like bell.

Waving her wand around, Hail Bell conjured up a series of blood-red summoning circles that fired a storm of hail at Tri-Eyed Dice, breaking the barrier before it could fully form.

"Tri-Eyed Dice was banished," Frank analyzed, "But since Rin discarded Hail Bell, that means there's no change in Diamond Bell's ATK."

"Hope you're wearing your winter Riding outfit Yugo, 'because you're in for some major frost bite!" Rin shouted as the attack continued uninterrupted.

 _Yugo: So…we good? Everyone all caught up to this point?_

 _Rin: Yeah, I'd say so._

"Tsk, time for Plan B." Yugo grunted, "Trap hatsudo! Synchro Fighter! By targeting Legolancer, I make it so that my monster cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects until the end of this Battle Phase, and he also gains 1000 ATK!"

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer: 1300 + 1000 = 2300 ATK**

Holding up his shield arm, Legolancer blocked the tornado of freezing winds, which spun him around and tore off dozens of small bricks until eventually he lost most of his armor.

"Furthermore, I use the other effect of Legolancer in order to reduce the damage to zero and decrease its ATK by the amount negated!"

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer: 2300 – 2100 = 200 ATK**

"Yugo saved his monster," Crow remarked. "But at the same time, Legolancer's ATK has gotten so low that he can only use its effect one more time."

"And something tells me that Rin isn't done with her turn yet." Shinji said with a worried expression.

"Diamond Bell's other effect!" Rin exclaimed. "During either of our Battle Phases, I can target a monster in my Graveyard with a Level lower than that of Diamond Bell's and Special Summon it! Targeting Wind Witch – Winter Bell, I revive her.

"Crystal Wing no kouka!" Yugo countered. "When an opponent's monster activates its effect, I can negate that effect, destroy that monster and have Crystal Wing gain ATK equal to that monster's original ATK until the End Phase! Distorted Refraction!"

As Diamond Bell began reciting a spell, snowflake runes on her palms glowing softly, Crystal Wing's wings began to shine brightly before a wave of pure light erupted in her direction.

"Diamond Bell's third effect!" Rin declared. "Once during either of our turns, Diamond Bell can target a monster on the field or in either Graveyard and gain the effects of that monster until the end of this turn. I choose… Clear Wing Synchro Dragon!"

"NANI!" Yugo cried out in shock, memories of his and Rin's last duel flooding back. Snarling as Diamond Bell unleashed her own wave of light that quickly overpowered Crystal Wing's, he declared, "I activate the effect of Synchro Fighter in my Graveyard. Since a Synchro Monster would be destroyed, I can banish Synchro Fighter in order to prevent my dragon's destruction, make it so he cannot be destroyed for the rest of this turn, and on top of that, I won't take any battle damage involving him either!"

"And now," Rin stated calmly, "Since Diamond Bell's effect wasn't negated, that means this old friend is coming back for an encore. Revive, Winter Bell!"

 **Wind Witch – Winter Bell:** _ **2400 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 7/ Spellcaster/ Synchro/ Effect**

"Winter Bell, finish off that toy soldier! Winter Fury!" Rin ordered, her monster creating a storm of icicles that Legolancer intercepted with his shield. However, at this point most of the blocks on its body were lost, and several of the icicles had managed to either pierce the shield or permanently embed themselves in between the bricks.

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer: 200 – 0 ATK**

Sighing, Yugo felt exhausted. Rin's relentless combos had been more challenging than he had seen before.

 _Rin: I'd just like to tell everyone to start getting ready to play Merag's Theme from Zexal Sound Duel 5. It really sets the mood for this next bit._

 _Yugo: Trust me guys, it does. I still can't believe she did this!_

"Well, at least now you can't do anything else." Yugo smirked, feeling like he could recover next turn.

Those feelings however, where dashed when Rin asked him the following question.

"Yugo, which of these monsters is the one that doesn't fit?"

"Huh?" Yugo raised an eyebrow at the question. "Well let's see, it would probably be Glacier Bell because she's a Tuner in addition to being a Synchro and that she's the only one whose not above Level five and - Wait you're not gonna-?!"

"I am!" Rin shouted as her bike began accelerating, leaving Yugo in a literal cloud of dust.

"I tune my Level seven Winter Bell with my Level three Glacier Bell and Accel Synchro!"

Glacier Bell rang her bell-shaped hips before transforming into three rings, rotating around Winter Bell as a frigid storm began to blow across the track. Rin's Ace monster morphed into a line of seven stars as she began a summoning chant.

"Song of the frozen winds, throughout the storm of winter, resonate with the winds and wield absolute power with your frozen heart! Accel Synchro! Rise above the winter storm's zenith! Level Ten! Wind Witch – Absolute Zero Bell!"

In a flash of light, Rin's new monster began to crystalize into existence, the winter storm making way for her debut. Similar in shape to Diamond Bell, but larger, Absolute Zero Bell bore a massive snowflake made of six enormous triangular fins attached to the edges of a massive white ring on her back. In the center of her sternum was a hole, a heart-shaped bell resting neatly in the center. Her bell-shaped hips were smooth, and consisted of two layers, while a massive icy ringer hang at the bottom. Gliding on two sets of fin-shaped arms, Absolute Zero Bell conjured up a ball of snowy winds between her four hands before releasing a blast of icy wind in all directions.

 **Wind Witch – Absolute Zero Bell:** _ **3600 ATK**_ **/ 3600 DEF/ WIND/ Level 10/ Spellcaster/ Synchro/ Effect**

"Absolute Zero Bell's monster effect!" Rin ordered as Absolute Zero Bell held out two hands towards Yugo's field. "All monsters you control lose 100 ATK and DEF for each monster in our Graveyards. There are currently fifteen between us, so Crystal Wing loses 1500 ATK and DEF!"

Conjuring up a sphere of wind, Absolute Zero Bell sent a frigid gust towards Yugo's field, covering up all is monsters in snow and frost.

 **Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon: 4000 – 1500 = 2500 ATK/ 2500 – 1500 = 1000 DEF**

"Setting two cards facedown. Turn end." Rin finished with a smile before turning her bike around to face Yugo. "You're at a massive disadvantage here Yugo. Even with Crystal Wing and Pendulum Summoning, you can't overcome the Pendulum or Accel Synchro Summons I've learned. Both Diamond Bell and Absolute Zero Bell can copy monster effects in the Graveyard or on the field during either of our turns, and Absolute Zero Bell can steal the effects from those monsters as well. Not to mention with each monster in the Graveyard, Diamond Bell will grow stronger while your monsters are weakened. Plus their revival effects and Cemetery-Wind Bell Chime will allow me to constantly bring them back, while Win-Echoing Bell Chime will let me add monsters should they be destroyed. "

Yugo scowled, desperately trying to find a way out of his current scenario. Between her Synchro Monsters, there was no way for him to utilize Crystal Wing's effects, and her Trap cards providing constant recovery. With only a single card in his hand, a 0 ATK Legolancer and a near useless Synchro Dragon, there seemed to be no way for him to get out of this predicament.

"Give up Yugo." Rin said, earning his attention. "You've barely been able to defeat me in the past, and now with my new tactics, you'll lose again if you try."

" _Oi, oi_!" Crystal Wing shouted. " _Don't listen to her Yugo! You've never been one to give up in the past, do not start quitting on me today!"_

"Come on Yugo," Rin whispered. "Show me that you've learned from your past mistakes. Show me that you've improved."

Eyes covered by the shadow of his helmet, Yugo actually began to consider giving up. Rin had always been a strong competitor. Whether it be knowing how to use her opponent's tactics against them or giving them a major cause of freezer burn with her damaging effects, she was hard to overcome.

Palm hovering just above his Deck, Yugo hesitated for a few seconds before looking up at Rin. "Rin, you and I have known each other forever. We know all each other's strengths and weaknesses, be it in a duel or real life. And that includes my greatest strength…I never know when to quit! I'm going to beat you and win this duel!"

"Exactly what I was hoping you'd say." Rin murmured, smiling at Yugo's determination.

"Sorry if I scared you for a second or two there buddy," Yugo told Crystal Wing. "Now let's kick some arse!"

" _That's the idiot master I know!_ " Crystal Wing roared in agreement.

At the moment, Yugo saw something appear before his eyes. The silhouette of a dragon that looked similar to Clear Wing, yet different at the same time, staring right at him.

" _Could this be….a new power waiting to be unleashed?"_ Yugo wondered before placing the tips of his fingers on the edge of his deck. "ORE NO TURN!"

"During your Standby Phase, I activate the Trap, Wind-Reverberating Bell Chime!" Rin declared before Yugo could do anything. "With this card's effect, I add Hail Bell and Frozen Bell from my Graveyard to my hand. Of course," she added as she took the cards out of her Graveyard, "Since there are less monsters in the Graveyards, the effects of Diamond Bell and Absolute Zero Bell lose some potency.

 **Wind Witch – Diamond Bell: 4100 ATK**

 **Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon: 2700 ATK**

Unconcerned by Rin's trap, Yugo continued. "With the already set Pendulum Scale, I Pendulum Summon! Appear!"

A single orb of light descended from the portal, transforming into a large white ball that bounced on the track. Positioned around the ball where six smaller semi-spheres, acting as a head, robotic limbs and sort of tail. On the head semi-sphere was a black line with two dots at the end.

 **Speedroid Reboundball:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Level 6/ P.S. 1/ Machine/ Pendulum/ Effect**

 _Yugo: Sweet, I always wanted my own personal Baymax!_

"The effect of Reboundball activates upon Summon!" Yugo shouted. "I target a Speedroid card on my field or Graveyard and return both Reboundball and the target to my hand! I target the Passinglider in my Pendulum Zone!"

Reboundball began rapidly bouncing up and down before launching itself upwards. Grabbing the toy glider in its robotic limbs, the bouncy ball shot itself at Yugo before both it and Passinglider transformed back into cards.

"And now I have a free Pendulum Zone," Yugo continued, "I can place the Scale 1 Reboundball there!"

Reboundball reappeared before shooting itself into the column of light, stopping so that it was level with Dominobutterfly.

"He Pendulum Summoned just so he can change his Scales?" Tanner said, perplexed. "Why would he waste his only Pendulum Summon on such a move?"

"It wasn't just about modifying his Scale though." Crow commented, "Yugo's gotta have something planned."

"Dominobutterfly no Pendulum Kouka!" Yugo roared. "By discarding Passinglider, I can add the banished Tri-Eyed Dice back to my hand!"

"Not happening!" Rin countered. "Hail Bell's monster effect! I discard her in order to negate Dominobutterfly's effect and destroy it!"

Just as before, Rin's red-headed witch appeared and conjured up a storm of hail that imprisoned Dominobutterfly in a tomb of hail before both monsters disappeared from view.

"Dominobutterfly is a Pendulum Monster, so it goes back to the Extra Deck." Amanda remarked, counting with her fingers. "And since both Hail Bell and Passinglider were discarded-"

"That's fifteen monsters in the Graveyard." Frank finished.

"I figured you couldn't resist using Hail Bell. But now with that out of the way, I can use this." Yugo proclaimed, slamming a card on his bike's on-board duel disk. "Quick-Play Spell activate, Speedroid Downshift! By targeting Legolancer, I can Special Summon a Hi-Speedroid from my Extra Deck while ignoring the summoning conditions, but then Legolancer will be destroyed. Appear, Level Four! Hi-Speedroid Fidgetspeeder!"

Through a blue summoning portal, a pair of robotic arms appeared, carrying a large box of tools. Opening the box and removing a hammer and screwdriver, the arms began to work on Legolancer. Within a few seconds, the brick soldier was gone, and in its place was a large hover bike motorcycle. Instead of wheels, the bike had a pair of bladed fidget spinners that spun at sonic speeds, propelling it forward. Atop the bike was a robotic rider, similar to that of the one on Yugo's Hi-Speedroid Chanbarider, holding a pair of fidget spinner shurikens in each hand as he rode alongside Yugo's bike.

 **Hi-Speedroid Fidgetspeeder:** _ **1000 ATK**_ **/ 800 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Machine/ Synchro/ Tuner/ Effect**

"A Synchro Tuner…" Rin whispered, anticipating Yugo's next move. "What are you up to Yugo?"

Taking the opportunity to zoom past Rin, Yugo continued with his turn. "Since Legolancer was destroyed, I can activate its other effect! I send Hi-Speedroid Maken Dama from my Extra Deck to my Graveyard in order to Special Summon Legolancer back! Come on buddy, we're not outta this race yet!"

The Lego brick soldier jumped out of a Graveyard portal, looking as fit and proper as when he was first summoned.

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer:** _ **2800 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 8/ Machine/ Synchro/ Effect**

"But don't forget!" Rin countered, "Since there are now sixteen monsters in the Graveyard, the effects of both of my monsters grows stronger!"

 **Wind Witch – Diamond Bell: 4400 ATK**

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer: 1200 ATK**

 **Hi-Speedroid Fidgetspeeder: 0 ATK**

 **Crystal Wing Synchro Dragon: 2400 ATK**

"Those effects aren't gonna stop me!" Yugo shouted with pride. "I activate the effect of Fidgetspeeder! Since I Special Summoned it this turn, I get to target a Spell or Trap on the field and destroy it! Say goodbye to Cemetery-Wind Bell Chime!"

The rider on Fidgetspeeder throwing his weapons towards the image of Rin's Trap card.

"Diamond Bell no kouka!" Rin countered. "By targeting Crystal Wing, I make it so Diamond Bell copies the effects of your monster for the turn! Meaning now Fidgetspeeder's effect is negated and your monster is destroyed!"

"Crystal Wing no kouka!"

"What's he doing?!" Carly shouted, her voice going up a bit. "Rin still has Absolute Zero Bell, who, need I remind you, has a similar effect to that of Diamond Bell!"

"And he knows this." Crow said calmly.

"What do you mean Crow?" The three children asked.

"Yugo wants Rin to use both of her monster's copying effects, so that way she can't steal the effects of a stronger monster."

"But still, that means…." Shinji whispered, seeing what was about to happen.

"Absolute Zero Bell no kouka! I target Crystal Wing in order to negate its effects and gain them for the turn!" Rin declared.

Raising their hands into the air, both of Rin's Synchro Monsters began chanting in a foreign tone and conjured up a massive snowy wind that eclipsed the light of Crystal Wing's effects. Frigid assault calming moments after, everyone saw that Yugo's field had been stripped of most of his monsters, Legolancer standing alone in the aftermath.

"…He loses his best monster." Shinji finished his thoughts.

"Thanks to the copied effect of Crystal Wing, both Diamond Bell and Absolute Zero Bell gain ATK equal to your dragon's ATK! Plus Diamond Bell gains another 200 ATK since two monsters went to the Graveyard, and Legolancer loses the same amount!" Rin proclaimed as her monsters once again glowed with strength.

 **Wind Witch – Diamond Bell: 4400 + 2400 + (100 X 2) = 7000 ATK**

 **Wind Witch – Absolute Zero Bell: 3600 + 2400 = 6000 ATK**

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer: 1200 – (100 X 2) = 1000 ATK**

The three children stared at Rin's monsters in shock. Both of them had over 5000 ATK. Even if Yugo could somehow summon a stronger and make it stronger, their effects would only make it easier for Rin to finish him off on her next turn.

Rin looked at Yugo with a disappointed look. "Is that the best you could do Yugo. I'll admit, you had me going their when you summoned a Synchro Tuner, but clearly you didn't think things through. Typical."

"Actually Rin," Yugo smirked, "It's you who has fallen into MY trap! I did summon Fidgetspeeder for the purpose of Synchro Summoning, but to do that, I needed to get it in my Graveyard first, which thanks to you, means I can!"

"What are you talking about? Even three year olds know you can't Synchro Summon using monsters in the Graveyard as Material." Rin rolled stated, rolling her eyes.

"Well that that to Fidgetspeeder! 'Cause when he's destroyed and sent to my Graveyard, I can banish him and another WIND monster in order to Synchro Summon!" Yugo revealed with a large grin on his face.

"Nani!?" Exclaimed Rin.

"It's time for your big debut." Yugo whispered to himself before a black Graveyard portal opened up beside his bike, the spectral forms of Fidgetspeeder and Beigomax rising out of it. "I banish my Level three Beigomax and Level four Fidgetspeeder in order to Synchro Summon!"

The spirits of Yugo's monsters transformed into the iconic Synchro formation as Yugo sped up on his D-Wheel, a rush of power and newly found strength surging through him as he began his summoning chant.

"Spread those shining and wondrous wings, and strike down our enemies at the speed of sound! SYNCHRO SHOUKAN! Ideyo, Reberu Nana! Clear Wing Fast Dragon!"

In an explosion of light, a large swirling wind storm appeared beside the tracks, before shooting into the sky and positioning itself above Yugo's. A pair of yellow eyes appeared within the storm before the winds dispersed, unveiling Yugo's new Synchro Monster: A white, black and green dragon, similar in design to that of Clear Wing, with sharper edges and the same translucent wings as his counterpart. Spinning through the air, the new dragon howled loudly, roar echoing against the towering buildings of the city.

 **Clear Wing Fast Dragon:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Dragon/ Synchro/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"A Synchro-Pendulum, and an alternate version of Clear Wing at that…." Jack whispered in a combination of awe and approval. The former Duel King smiled at this display. "Let's see if he can top his counterpart."

"So cool!" Frank, Amanda and Tanner joyfully exclaimed.

"I didn't know these counterparts had Pendulum-Extra Deck Hybrids!" A stunned Crow exclaimed, eyes wide as a saucer plate. "Yuya yes, but I never would have guessed that the other seven guys had the ability to create them as well!"

"That makes two of us." Carly added softly.

"You wanted me to improve myself Rin, and this is my answer!" Yugo roared as his dragon had taken up position on his field. "This card is my desire to become stronger incarnate, Clear Wing Fast Dragon!" He exclaimed in tune with his dragon's howls.

Unable to conceal the smile on her face, Rin merely nodded in approval.

 _Rin: Man, could you have imagine if you Fusion Summoned?_

 _Yugo: Ugh I know, I can practically hear Yuri already. "What's the deal Fusion, you finally decide to live up to your name?" He'd never let me hear the end of it!_

"Now then," Yugo continued, "I banish Speedroid Downshift from my Graveyard in order to return the banished Fidgetspeeder to my Graveyard. Of course, he's not returning for long because I now banish him in order to activate the other effect of Legolancer! For the rest of this turn, Legolancer's Level and effects become the same as Fidgetspeeder!"

Legolancer glowed a bright light as multiple blocks detached themselves from his body before taking on the silhouette of Fidgetspeeder. When the light died down, the brick toy soldier was revealed to have transformed into a blocky version of the hover bike riding robot.

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer: Level 4**

"And since Legolancer was summoned this turn, that means he can use the effect of Fidgetspeeder to destroy your Cemetery-Wind Bell Chime!" Yugo continued, the transformed Legolancer shooting (somewhat amusingly) a large ball of Lego bricks all jumbled up towards Rin's trap.

"I activate the effect of Cemetery-Wind Bell Chime!" Rin countered, attempting to make use of the card one more time. "By targeting either of my Synchro Monsters, I Special Summon a Wind Witch from my Graveyard with a lower Level. Revive, Hail Bell!"

A portal appeared beside Rin, from which her red-haired witch reappeared, covered in a lavender aura.

 **Wind Witch – Hail Bell: 1900 ATK/** _ **1900 DEF**_ **/ Level 5/ Spellcaster/ Effect**

"Hail Bell's other effect! If she is Special Summoned, I can target a card on the field and destroy it!" Rin continued as her monster began conjuring up another set of red magic circles. "I choose to destroy your new version of Clear Wing!"

"Why would she go after Fast Dragon? Shouldn't she go after Legolancer?" A confused Tanner asked.

Crow took a brief glance at the screen to read the text on Rin's card. "The effect of Cemetery-Wind Bell Chime will destroy all of the monsters summoned by its effects once it gets destroyed. Hail Bell's effect won't negate Legolancer's effect, but she can still use it to destroy Fast Dragon."

"Aww, and after he went through all the trouble to summon it." Amanda pouted, feeling bad to see the dragon disappear.

Yugo smirk, he still had one trick up his sleeve. "Clear Wing Fast Dragon no kouka! Once during either of our turns, I can target a monster you control in order to both negate that monster's effects and drop its ATK to zero! Vanishing Mirror!"

Fast Dragon's wings began surging with power before the dragon shot a bolt of energy towards Hail Bell, paralyzing the monster and disrupting her summoning spell. Meanwhile, Legolancer's brick sphere remained unstopped, crushing Rin's Trap card and the immobilized Hail Bell with it.

"So not only does it look like Clear Wing, it has a similar effect as well." Rin whispered, analyzing the similarities between the two dragons. "Only this time it works on all monsters and reduces their ATK as well. But that won't stop me! I use the effect of Wind-Echoing Bell Chime in order to add a second copy of Hail Bell to my hand. And don't forget, so long as Absolute Zero Bell and Diamond Bell are on my field, your monsters are still weaker than mine.

"I know. You've said it so many times you're beginning to sound like a broken record!" Yugo screamed, beginning to grow tired of Rin repeating herself. She wasn't wrong though, looking at the current stats of their monsters only proved her right.

 **Clear Wing Fast Dragon: 900 ATK**

 **Hi-Speedroid Legolancer: 1200 ATK**

 **Wind Witch – Absolute Zero Bell: 6000 ATK**

 **Wind Witch – Diamond Bell: 6800 ATK**

"Now or never." Yugo whispered before turning his bike around. "Battle! Legolancer attacks Absolute Zero Bell!"

"What? Okay, now I _know_ he's gone crazy!" Carly shouted as Legolancer's arm transformed into a gun-shaped Lego piece.

"Absolute Zero Bell's third and final effect!" Rin countered. "I don't know what you think you're going to accomplish Yugo, but I might as well stop you here! Once during either of our Battle Phases, Absolute Zero Bell lets me summon a monster from my Deck with a Level lower than her own! I summon another copy of Iceberg Bell in Defense Position."

Absolute Zero Bell brought her hands together and conjured up a blue portal, the golem riding witch popping out seconds afterwards.

 **Wind Witch – Iceberg Bell: 2000 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ WIND/ Level 5/ P.S. 5/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Now you're forced to attack Iceberg Bell!" Rin exclaimed as her monster positioned itself between the battling monsters. "And don't forget about her effect afterwards."

"Actually Rin, I'm not worried about that effect at all." Yugo said nonchalantly with a small grin on his face. "I use the final effect that Legolancer copied from Fidgetspeeder! Since its battling a Special Summoned monster, both of our monsters are destroyed at the start of the Damage Step!"

Rin gasped as the blocky monster exploded into a couple dozen blocks, destroying Iceberg Bell like shrapnel against cardboard.

"And now he revives Legolancer." Crow said as Yugo sent a card from his Extra Deck to his Graveyard.

"Only to fail thanks to the other copy of Hail Bell." Shinji added as a hail storm destroyed Legolancer as it began to emerge from the Graveyard.

Yugo smiled as he made his next move. "I activate the effect of the Hi-Speedroid Tako Fighter Kite I sent to the Graveyard!" He exclaimed as a mechanical kite, combined from a Japanese Zero Fighter Jet and a paper kite, flew out of his Graveyard. "Since this card was sent to the Graveyard, I can equip it to a WIND Synchro Monster I control as an Equip Spell at the cost of banishing it when it leaves the field. I equip this card onto Clear Wing Fast Dragon!"

Fast Dragon ascended to the heavens, Tako Fighter Kite flying above him. In a flash of light, the plane disappeared, and Fast Dragon's wings were revealed to have transformed into a pair of massive, aerodynamic paper wings.

 **Clear Wing Fast Dragon: 700 ATK**

"Ikay, Clear Wing Fast Dragon, attack Wind Witch – Absolute Zero Bell!" Yugo continued, his new dragon roaring in unison.

"I activate-" Rin began, only for Yugo to cut her off.

"Sorry, but so long as Fast Dragon is equipped with Tako Fighter Kite, you can't activate effects when it attacks, or when Fighter Kite's other effects are activated! I on the other hand, can do this! I banish Speedroid Otoshidriver from my Graveyard and activate its effect!"

Rin raised an eyebrow. "You didn't summon that card before, unless…That was the card you sent to the Graveyard earlier with OMK Gum's effect."

"I wasn't planning on using it before, but I seeing as how having a set strategy was never my thing, I figured I it was now or never!" Yugo explained as a man made out of cylinder blocks, the top one having a face that resembled that of a Daruma Otoshi game, jumped out of a black portal with a hammer in his hand.

"If a WIND monster I control battles my opponent's monster, I can banish Otoshidriver in order to target either of our monsters in order to restore its ATK to the original value! And that target is….Your Absolute Zero Bell!"

With a malicious smirk, Otoshidriver leapt forwards before whacking Absolute Zero Bell in the face with his hammer, a comically oversized welt growing from the side of her head afterwards.

 **Wind Witch – Absolute Zero Bell: 6000 – 3600 ATK**

"Consider that payback for every time you or one of the other girls physically assaulted me!" Yugo grinned, thinking back to the times Rin, Yuzu or Serena had caused him pain.

 _Rin: For the record, you did deserve each and every one of those hits. Fun Fact, there's a little bet going on between me and Serena on how Ruri's gonna hold up the tradition. I was betting on her brother strangling you in a headlock, though Serena's betting on a roundhouse kick to the face._

 _Yugo: IF I COULD PICK BETWEEN THOSE TWO, I CHOOSE NEITHER!_

Rin clicked her tongue in annoyance. "Even if you weakened Absolute Zero Bell, your dragon will still go down! Strike back, Absolute Zero Bell!"

With the sound of a ringing bell in the background, the six fins on Absolute Zero Bell's back began to each fire a swirling blast of icy winds. Frigid gusts coalescing in front of her center, Absolute Zero Bell fired a massive icy tornado towards Yugo's dragon, who retaliated by firing a blast of greenish-yellow energy from his mouth.

"Thanks to Tako Fighter Kite, Fast Dragon cannot be destroyed by battle either!" Yugo revealed as his dragon was quickly overwhelmed, and nearly sent spiraling into a nearby building before managing to regain control.

 **Yugo: 3000 – 100 LP**

"Well I'll admit, I did not expect for you to try something so suicidal." Rin said as Fast Dragon returned to Yugo's side. "And seeing as how you did so without the intent of destroying my monster, I assume you have a method to your madness."

Yugo blinked in confusion. "What?"

Rin sighed heavily. "You have something crazy planned."

That Yugo understood. "Oh yeah definitely! I activate the other effect of Tako Fighter Kite! After the equipped monster battles a monster, I can target a monster on the field and chose to either destroy it, or negate its effects and drop its ATK and DEF to, well, an absolute zero!"

"Nani!" Rin exclaimed, shocked.

The paper wings attached to Fast Dragon's back began glow as Rin's monster began to become sluggish and slow.

"And with Absolute Zero Bell's effects negated, Fast Dragon returns to full strength!"

 **Wind Witch – Absolute Zero Bell: 0 ATK/ 0 DEF (Effects Negated)**

 **Clear Wing Fast Dragon: 2500 ATK/ 2000 DEF**

"He went through all that just seal off Rin's strongest monster but not destroy it." Crow remarked with a raised brow. "Why go through all that hassle?"

Yugo grinned, imagining the road to victory in his head. "I activate the effect of Den-Den Daiko Duke in my Graveyard. Since I have less than 1000 Life Points, I banish this card and Special Summon a Tuner from my Graveyard. Come on back, Hex-Eyed Dice!"

 **Speedroid Hex-Eyed Dice:** _ **500 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 5/ Machine/ Tuner/ Effect**

"Since Hex-Eyed Dice was summoned, its effect lets me add a Speedroid monster from my Deck to my hand." Yugo grinned. "And now, since I haven't used my Normal Summon this turn, I'll use it to bring out the monster, Speedroid Blue-Eyed Dice!"

 _Yugo: Sadly it is not a dice covered with the faces of Blue-Eyes White Dragon._

 _Rin: That might be a good thing, considering how Seto Kaiba is in this story and we all know how much Kaiba_ loves _his Blue-Eyes._

 _Yugo: PFHMT! Like Kaiba cares about cares about any other game piece besides actual trading cards!_

 _Rin: *sigh* Which interpretation do you think writer's going with? Dubbed, Original, or Abridged, because now-okay stop it, just move on!_

Another portal opened up besides Yugo, and from within came a large eight-sided white die, faces covered with mysterious blue eyes.

 **Speedroid Blue-Eyed Dice:** _ **400 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Machine/ Tuner/ Effect**

"Since Blue-Eyed Dice was Norma Summoned," Yugo continued, the turn feeling like it wouldn't end, "I get to draw a card, and if it's a Level three or lower Speedroid, I get to summon it. Draw!"

Taking a brief glance, Yugo revealed the card to be a Trap. "Not a monster, but that's okay. I didn't need one anyway."

Smiling, Yugo briefly apologized to Yuya for what he was about to do. "What was the catchphrase again….oh right! _LADIES AND GENTLEMEN_!"

"Eh!" The trio of children said in confusion, wondering as to why Yugo was suddenly impersonating Yuya.

"I turn your attention towards the Reboundball I activated earlier this turn!" Yugo declared in a loud and exuberant voice. "What I didn't reveal earlier was the card's Pendulum Effect, which I now activate: Once per turn, during my Main Phase 2, I can tribute two of my Speedroid Tuners, and immediately conduct my Battle Phase again!"

"A second battle phase!" A stunned Rin exclaimed as the two dice monsters disappeared, leaving only Fast Dragon on Yugo's field.

"Battle! Clear Wing Fast Dragon, attack Wind Witch – Absolute Zero Bell! Hurricane Skydive Slicer!"

Ascending through the air are at a speed so rapid it briefly broke the sound barrier and created a sonic boom, Fast Dragon dived down after reaching a few hundred meters, wings cutting through the tension in the air like a hot knife through butter. With a mighty howl, the dragon rammed into Absolute Zero Bell and obliterated the monster, causing a brief torrent of icy winds to whip up and cause Rin to nearly spin out of control.

 **Rin: 4000 – 2500 = 1500 LP**

"Tako Fighter Kite no kouka!" Yugo continued as he sped past Rin, not losing a chance pass by. "I target Diamond Bell and destroy it!"

Fast Dragon roared once more as its paper wings glowed, unleashing a blinding flash that turned the pristine Diamond Bell into nothing but dust in the breeze.

The audience was, for lack of a better term, absolutely floored.

"He just destroyed both of Rin's incredibly powerful monsters, one of which an Accel Synchro, in just one turn…" Amanda muttered before sharing looks with Frank and Tanner.

"SUGEI!" The three exclaimed cheerfully.

"Alright Yugo!' Crow cheered. "Way to come back from behind!"

"Rin only has Frozen Bell in her hand." Carly said, a thinking look on her face. "If Rin draws another monster, she can Special Summon Frozen Bell and then use its effect to inflict 500 damage to Yugo, who only has 100 Life Points left. Unless Rin draws a Spell or Trap, or Yugo has another card to stop the damage, she could still win."

"No!" Tanner objected. "This duel can't end so anti-climactically after all the back and forth!"

"It's fine." Jack said calmly, a faint smile on his face as he looked down and saw the expressions Rin and Yugo had. "Neither of them will allow that to happen. Now come on, Yugo, Rin! Show us your dueling!"

"Setting one card facedown. Turn end." Yugo concluded, image of a card briefly appearing beside him. "Looks like the tables have turned Rin."

"So they have." Rin smiled back, before looking at her deck. _"Should I just let him win? After all, he hasn't won the last few times we dueled, and he did just show me that he's gotten even better now that he has Pendulum Summoning."_

Rin took only a second to consider the decision, before coming to the right conclusion. _"Still, what kind of duelist - no, friend - would I be_ _if I just let my opponent defeat me without even trying to fight back. Besides,"_ she thought, finger tips slowly grazing the top of her deck. _"There is one card I haven't had the chance to test out yet."_

"Watashi no turn, Draw!" Rin shouted against the wind. Looking at the card she had drawn, she found herself rather satisfied by her Deck's response to her feelings.

" _I was hoping I'd draw you."_

"I activate the effect of a monster in my hand! Since I don't control any monsters, I can Special Summon this card. Come forth, the enchanting bell ringing against the glistening winter winds! En Angel – Kaze!"

A swirling gust of snowy winds surged across the trackway as Rin's En Angel appeared before flying besides her master. Like the other Angels, Kaze bore a resemblance to her owner, had bright gold eyes, snowy white hair with two light green side tails, stylized identical to Rin's own hair. The top of her head was covered by a blue conical hat, with a wide brim and a large pink bow on the side. Her outfit was a pale green body suit with minty green trim and an attached open skirt, as well as sky blue gloves and boots. Ascending up her right arm was a green ribbon printed with wind spiral embroidery, while a silver necklace was hung by her neck, a green gem in the shape of a stylized square-cap laying against her bosom. Sitting atop a beautiful, bell-tipped crystal broom, Kaze flapped her white wings, revealing a green wind spiral on each one.

 **En Angel – Kaze:** _ **1400 ATK**_ **/ 1600 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Spellcaster/ Tuner/ Effect**

 _Yugo: Wait, if your monster has wings, then why is she ridding on a broom? That doesn't really make sense._

 _Rin: Yugo, our lives have been hectic since the day Yuri kidnapped me and took me to Academia. Why are you now just suddenly preaching logic?_

 _Yugo: Touché._

"Kaze has more to her effect." Rin revealed, slowly coercing the accelerator of her bike. "She also lets me Special Summon another En or Wind Witch from my hand! Koi, Frozen Bell!"

 _Yugo: …And so the little Wind Witch that was totally a Disney reference returned to Rin's field, preparing to belt out a cover of 'Let it Go.' HAHAHAHAHAHA!_

 _Rin: Laugh now, but need I remind you about what's going to happen in a couple of minutes?_

 _Yugo (Sadly): Oh yeah, that…._

 **Wind Witch – Frozen Bell: 800 ATK/** _ **800 DEF**_ **/ WIND/ Level 2/ Spellcaster/ Tuner/ Effect**

"Frozen bell's effect activates since she was summoned." Rin yawned, "I draw a card and you take 500 damage."

Giggling, Frozen Bell conjured up a flurry of spiraling snowflakes and sent them in Yugo's direction, ready to finish off the duel.

"Eizoku Torappu Hatsudo!" Yugo countered, revealing his face down. "Speedroid Nitro-Boost! So long as this card is on the field, I can negate any card or effect that would inflict damage to either of us. In addition, afterwards I get to target a WIND monster on my field and give it a boost equal to the amount negated! Meaning now Fast Dragon gains 500 ATK!"

In front of Yugo, Fast Dragon howled with such vigor that the snowflakes actually melted, before the dragon proceeded to glow with power.

 **Clear Wing Fast Dragon: 2500 + 500 = 3000 ATK**

An amused smile slowly appeared on Rin's face.

"Good, I was hoping you had a trick up your sleeve." She smirked. "Of course, so long as that card is on the field, my burn strategy is pretty much gone. Fortunately I always have a Plan B."

Taking the card she had drawn, she slammed it against the blade of her duel disk. "I Normal Summon Wind Witch – Ice Bell!"

Swooping down on an elegant bell-tipped broomstick was one of Rin's stock monsters; a blue-haired witch with a lock of purple over her eyes, wearing a purple witch hat and wielding an icicle wand in her hand.

 **Wind Witch – Ice Bell:** _ **1000 ATK**_ **/ 1000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 3/ Spellcaster/ Effect**

 _Yugo: UGH! Ice Bell, I always hated her!_

 _Rin: You're just upset that I have been known to abuse her effect a few…dozen times._

"Summon as many monsters as you-" Yugo began, before realizing something. "Wait a minute, you can't summon any of your stronger monsters with the combination you have on your field! And you only have one copy of Winter Bell in your Extra Deck! What are you gonna do?"

Rin smirked. "This! I tune Level three Ice Bell with Level four Kaze!"

Kaze faded before transforming into four rings enveloped by a rainbow glow, which enveloped Ice Bell as Rin chanted.

"Bells of twilight wind, make snow and ice my power and ring more clearly! Synchro Shoukan! Sail through the tide of winter! Level Seven! Wind Witch – Wintertide Bell!"

In a flash of bright light and frigid winds, a new ice sprite appeared on the field. Like with Fast Dragon, Wintertide Bell resembled her non-Pendulum counterparts, but with a few minor alterations. Her upper half was mostly the same, but with the addition of a layer of clear ice over her fins like the sleeves of a dress. The spherical bell portion of her lower body was white, decorated with lines of green circuitry. A noticeable difference is that, unlike Winter Bell, who had a single large fin underneath her bell-shaped hips, Wintertide's bell was incased in five medium-length fins that were arranged in an 'x' formation.

 **Wind Witch – Wintertide Bell:** _ **2400 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Kaze's other effect!" Rin continued, gradually gaining speed on her bike. "Since she was you used as Synchro Material, I can add a Continuous Spell from my Deck or Graveyard to my hand! I add En Power and activate it!"

As Rin slammed the card down, the gem on her bracelet gave a faint glow. "Once per turn, I can target a monster I control, Wintertide Bell in this case, and make it so for this turn, she cannot be destroyed by card effects and gains 800 ATK and DEF for each of my En Continuous Spells!

Oh, and it also restores her effects if they're negated." She casually added as her monster grew stronger.

 **Wind Witch – Wintertide Bell: 2400 + 800 = 3200 ATK/ 2000 + 800 = 2800 DEF**

"Okay, where do you keep getting these OP cards from!?" Yugo exclaimed in a combination of shock, annoyance and a hint of greed.

"Yugo, be real for a second." Rin answered, rolling her eyes. "Yuya's deck does stuff like this all the time. Only fair that other people get to do it.

 _Yugo: Did you just make some kinda meta-comment about how the protagonist gets all the Ex-Machina cards?_

 _Rin: Yes, and in this story, all eight of us are the protagonists, meaning I can use them as well._

 _Yugo: Well I want mine right now!_

 _Rin: You already used it with Fast Dragon._

 _Yugo: ****!_

"Battle! Wintertide Bell, attack Fast Dragon!" Rin ordered, a glowing ball of light appearing in front of her monster.

"Fast Dragon no kouka!" Yugo countered as he and Rin returned to the Duel Palace. "I target Wintertide Bell, negate her effects and reduce her ATK and DEF to 0! Vanishing Mirror!"

Fast Dragon's wings lit up before firing a bolt of energy towards Wintertide Bell, paralyzing the ice sprite before she could fire her attack.

 **Wind Witch – Wintertide Bell: 0 ATK/ 0 DEF (Effects Negated)**

The three kids frowned. "Aww, and Rin was so close." Amanda pouted.

"I can't believe she forgot about Fast Dragon's effect." Frank added with a sigh.

"She didn't." Carly commented, earning the attention of the others. "It's just like what Yugo did last turn. She purposely set up a suicide maneuver in order to come back and win."

"Are you sure?" Shinji asked, brow raised. "It doesn't look like it."

"Trust me." Carly reassured. "Rin's going to win."

"En Power and Fog Bell no kouka!" Rin exclaimed. "By banishing Fog Bell from my Graveyard, I give all Wind Witches I control ATK equal to their own Levels times 100 while decreasing the ATK of all your monsters by 100 for each of their Levels as well! Ikay, Obscuring Fog Wind!"

Rising up from the Graveyard, the ghostly form of Rin's child witch appeared, before speeding across the field, blowing thick clouds of fog over the track before vanishing.

 **Wind Witch – Wintertide Bell: 0 + (100 X 7) = 700 ATK**

 **Clear Wing Fast Dragon: 3000 – (100 X 7) = 2300 ATK**

"And then," Rin continued as she effortlessly steered through the fog. "By tributing En Power, I give Wintertide Bell 200 ATK for each Spell and Trap I control. I have three; the Frost Bell in my Pendulum Zone, the face-up Wind-Echoing Bell Chime, and my set card, so Wintertide Bell gains another 600 ATK!

 **Wind Witch – Wintertide Bell: 700 + (200 X 3) = 1300 ATK**

From within the fog, Yugo looked at Rin's field with an unamused expression. "And that just reinforces my complaint about the 'random, overpowered cards from nowhere' thing. But still, it's not enough to win! Clear Wing Fast Dragon, melt Wintertide Bell like the ice age!"

Spinning its body around so fast it dispelled the fog, Fast Dragon's tail slashed against Wintertide Bell's body, causing her icy body to crack before the dragon fired a blast of light at her bell-shaped hips that melted her like a Popsicle in the sun.

 **Rin: 1500 – 1000 = 500 LP**

Yugo looked at Rin, trying to figure out her plan. He raised an eyebrow when she saw that, instead of a frustrated look on her face, she was smiling. Not just any smile though. No, this smile was the one that she only gave on very specific circumstances.

When she was about to make her game winning move.

"Trap hatsudo!" Rin proclaimed, the other card she had set on her previous turn revealing itself. "Wind-Resonating Bell Chime! Once per turn, I can target a Wind Witch in my Graveyard and Special Summon it with its effects negated! Appear, Hail Bell!"

Rin's read-headed witch came back to the field, the bobble on her hat swaying from side to side in the wind.

 **Wind Witch – Hail Bell: 1900 ATK/** _ **1900 DEF**_ **/ Level 5/ Spellcaster/ Effect**

"Then," Rin continued, twisting her accelerator and out speeding Yugo once again. "Immediately after this effect resolves, I Synchro Summon a Wind Witch from my Extra Deck using only the summoned monster and another monster I control! And the monster can be either face-up of face-down!"

Yugo's eyes widened as Rin tuned Hail Bell with Frozen Bell, bring back the alternate version of her ace monster. The rules of dueling state that monsters could attack if they were summoned during the Battle Phase. With there being a single hundred points difference between their monsters and Yugo himself having only 100 Life Points left, it was clear in the most uncertain of terms what was about to happen next.

He was going to lose.

 **Wind Witch – Wintertide Bell:** _ **2400 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Wintertide Bell, finish this!" Rin ordered before lower fins unfolded, turning her into what appered to be a six-sided snowflake. Creating and ordering a freezing tornado to speed towards Fast Dragon and toss the dragon around like a rag doll.

"Because of Fighter Kite, Clear Wing Fast Dragon isn't destroyed." Yugo muttered pitifully, knowing that this wouldn't help him.

"But, as they say." Rin smirked calmly as Yugo's bike began slowing down, hers doing the same. "You still take the damage."

 **Yugo: 100 – 100 = 0 LP**

 **Rin Wins**

"That was totally wicked!" Tanner exclaimed with a burst of energy, he and his foster siblings running out of the stands to meet the duelists once their bikes stop.

"Gotta admit." Crow chuckled as he followed after the three kids, "I didn't know who was going to win there for a second."

"That's the mark of good duelists." Jack said, finding the duel to be excellent. "I wouldn't expect less from a Friendship Cup semi-finalist. It's a shame I couldn't duel them in the Friendship Cup, I would have enjoyed dueling against such Passionate Duelists."

"Yeah." Shinji added before remembering something. Turning his head around, he called "Carly, you coming?"

Carly, who was messing with the laptop, chuckled nervously. "O-oh yeah. I-I'll be down in a minute."

Shinji raised a brow, but didn't say anything more as he walked away.

Meanwhile on the tracks, Rin was about to grab Yugo's shoulder. The boy looked depressed, apparently from losing against her again. "Yugo…"

"GODSDAMMIT!' The boy yelled to the heavens, startling Rin and making her back track. "I'm sorry guys," Yugo muttered as he took out Clear Wing, Crystal Wing and Fast Dragon. "I tried. Better luck next time."

" _Yugo those cards are all…"_ Clear Wing began before sighing. _"You know what, I won't even try at this point."_

Winter Bell laughed, sounding like a ringing bell. _"It seems that both are masters have improved, wouldn't you agree Clear Wing?"_

The dragon huffed. _"You aren't wrong snowflake. But don't forget, you used your penultimate form and got blown up almost immediately. And come to think of it, the same thing happened with Dancer before when Yugo dueled Serena. So even if we didn't win the Duel, when it comes to defeating you girls at the penultimate stage of your evolution, I'm 2-and-0!"_

Winter Bell rolled her blank eyes. _"Boys will be boys I suppose."_

"That was some excellent dueling you two." Jack remarked, praise filling the Synchro duo. "We were all on the edges of our seats during your last turns.

"Coming from the King-erm, former King-himself, you have no idea how much that means to us." Yugo replied with a grateful smile. Rin was grateful as well, she was just busy dealing with the terrible trio of ankle biters bombarding her with praise and the occasional question.

"Calm down, one at a time." Rin laughed, admittedly feeling touched by the children swarming her and looking up at her with admiring looks.

"Can you deal me?" Amanda asked, her foster brothers responding by asking the same question.

"Hold your horses kiddos." Crow interjected. "If anyone gets to duel her next it's me."

"WHY?" The dejected trio ask.

"Because I called first dibs." Crow responded jokingly, earning an uproar of laughter from everyone.

"No but seriously it's me who goes next….."

….

After a few more hours dueling, the group returned to Crow's place, tired out from all excitement. Yugo and Rin took up place in the living room, and where currently sitting on opposite ends of the couch.

"I never thought dueling could be so exhausting." Rin panted, exhausted from sitting on her bike seat for over seven hours.

"Oh come on." Yugo scoffed, out of breath himself. "We've sat on those bikes way longer than only seven hours."

"No we haven't." Rin stated bluntly.

"Oh. So…" Yugo began. "Do you wanna tell me why you wanted to duel me out of nowhere?"

Rin twirled a lock of her hair. "I guess I wanted to help you grow as a duelist."

"Yeah I got that." Yugo deadpanned. "Don't think I didn't realize what you were trying to do with that whole 'You Can't Win' speech. What I wanna know is why did you got through all this to make me a better duelist? Was it because of the Dark Dimension?"

Rin sighed. "Yugo, I wanted to do it…as a way of saying Thank You, for not giving up on me after I was kidnapped. When I heard you gave up a spot in the Friendship Cup for me, I…" she sighed again. "Why'd you do it?"

Yugo looked at the girl for a second before uttering a laugh. "That's a no-brainer. Even if you can be a giant nag at times, I can't imagine my life without you. And winning the Friendship Cup without you isn't a dream, as far as I know that's a nightmare."

Rin sniffled, wiping away a few stray tears. "I-I don't know what to say Yugo. You can be a massive idiot at times that's for sure, but I'm glad you're my idiot. I'll see you in the morning."

Yugo beamed brightly as Rin walked towards the guest room she was bunking in for the night. "Even if it is just as a friend…." He muttered softly. "I'm not gonna give up my feelings for you Rin, but for now, I'm glad you want me in your life."

Turning his head down to look at Clear Wing's card, Yugo's mind wandered back to the duel. "Rin can Accel Synchro now. Maybe it's time we go past just Crystal Wing and see what else you can do. What do you think buddy?"

With that final thought, Yugo turned off the light before laying down and slowly drifting off the sleep.

From outside the house, Clear Wing snorted. " _Over sixteen years and you still haven't made a move."_ He thought, before giving a small smile upon remembering the similarities between Yugo's situation and another incident in the past. _"It only took Zarc half that long with Ray."_

Clear Wing's joyful reminiscing was cut short when he felt a chill race up his spine. Not a simple chill one got when a draft blew in through in open door, no….

This was the chill of death.

" _It can't be…."_

….

While everyone else was asleep, Carly was still up, having dropped off a report to her boss before entering her car and going home. At least that's what she told the others what she'd be doing. In reality she was standing alone in the middle of an alleyway, hand clenching something under her jacket.

"Why'd I agree to meet him alone at night in a dark alley?" Carly shivered through her jacket. "This has all the trappings of a horror movie or rape story. Perfect opportunity for someone to leap out of nowhere and kill me with a knife."

"Don't worry. You're not supposed to die until you're seventy-three and surrounded by your grandchildren."

Carly whipped her head around, no longer alone in the alley. Behind her was a tall figure, male, based on the sound of his enigmatic voice. Most of his body was covered up by a black cape that was decorated by a series of foreboding runes that shifted across the fabric. In his hand he carried a phantasmal sickle, blade dragging against the ground. His entire form was covered in the aura of death and decay, the air around the two dropped ten degrees as he walked forward, a few scarce weeds withering in his presence.

While the first instinct of the average person would be to run screaming for the hills, Carly was oddly calm, if a bit surprised.

"Why do you have to do things at night?" Carly asked, sounding irritated.

'It's safer for me." The figure explained. "Less of a chance for enemies to learn of my presence. Do you have what you needed to get?"

"Yes." Carly answered as she reached into her pocket and pulled out a flash drive. "A list of every duelist in this City capable of standing a chance against the Dark Dimension if they attack, including Yugo and Rin."

"Ah, excellent." The figure praised as he snatched the item from Carly. "I assume you included your little boyfriend in this as well."

The mere mention of Jack caused Carly to blush. "It's nothing serious."

The figure snorted. "Tell that to him. He's head over heels for you. Not that I can blame him, you are a rather attractive young woman."

"No thanks, I'm not interested in dating a Duel Monster spirit." Carly objected, eyes narrowing behind her spectacles. "Especially if it's someone like you, Necrograph Magician."

The stranger, Necrograph Magician, rolled his eyes under his hood. "Typical. You humans always assumed me to be the wicked one amongst my sister and the other two. Just because I'm basically a death god I'm evil and destructive. All I am doing is my job, and helping preserve the balance between worlds. Why else do you think I'm helping you?"

"Because you're bored and have nothing better to do?" Carly asked sarcastically.

"No." Necrograph responded bluntly. "I'm working to help stop Cronus because what he's doing upsets the natural order. I may be tasked with being - what is it you humans call it, a 'Shinigami'- but I don't want to kill humans for fun. When I do, it's just to make room for new life to grow. You humans truly don't understand anything."

Ignore the comment against humanity, Carly began walking away. "Leaving so soon dear? I know you have a question on you mind." Necrograph called out, causing her to stop and turn back around.

"When I saw Yugo and Rin duel, when Yugo evolved his dragon, I felt so much power. Every other time I've seen monsters evolved in a duel, it was nothing compared to how much power I felt. Why are they like this? What makes these dragons so powerful?" The brunette question, voicing what she had thought when Crystal Wing appeared.

Necrograph rolled his head in amusement. "Before I answer your question, tell me Carly, what do you know about the Spirit World?"

"That it's the native realm and home of duel monsters, and that it existed eons before this world." Carly replied, recalling what little she had read about the realm of the beasts that duelist summoned each and every time they dueled. "And that there were originally only a small number of monsters there."

"Correct." Necrograph applauded. "Nice to know someone's been keeping up to date on her studies. So I'm sure you know about the Firstborn?"

"The Firstborn?" Carly parroted in confusion.

"The Firstborn was one of the original Duel Monsters that existed in the Spirit Realm, the first of the dragon race. Most kinds of monsters were originally descended from original monsters, inorganics such as Machines and Rocks being the exceptions. Spellcasters and magic using ones as well, instead those were just beings who learned the magical arts, my sister and the rest of our tribe being the originals."

"Which is why you are all powerful enough to create realities." Carly analyzed, putting two-and-two together.

"Correct. As with the creatures of these worlds, traits are based from parent to child. We call these traits the Original Genes. They are what give spirits their power and potential. The children of the Firstborn were as powerful as a God, unstoppable and invincible!"

Carly gulped nervously, the images of godly dragons rampaging was not a pretty sight.

Necrograph sighed, ruining the dramatic mood he had set up. "But, as with regular creatures, as time goes on, these traits start to fade away. The Original Genes are still present in every monster born now, but so weak and small that not many can utilize the power it could give them."

Slowly, Carly got a look at where the death magician was going. "And the Summoning Method Dragons have the Original Gene of the Firstborn."

"Hmm, not technically wrong. The original four dragons, the ones that ravaged the United World and merged together via Astrograph's power, they are from a bloodline where the Original Gene of the Firstborn has remained mostly intact. The three that didn't however, Black Heart, Tri-Tail and Burning Flare, were originally regular dragons. But when the United World was split over, the swaying balance reached into the other worlds, and the three of them came into contact with the energy that separated that world.

It corrected the impurities in their genetic make-up, reviving the Original Gene and transforming them from regular dragons into ones capable of going further than a simple evolved state."

"Going further? What do you mean?"

"All monsters are capable of evolving, but in different ways. Some, like the Fusion Dragon, have forced themselves to evolve permanently, while most can only hit multiple variants of one stage. Amongst Duel Monsters, there are five stages of evolution. Basic stage, in which a monster has simple powers and abilities. Evolved stage, which can be reached quite easily. Then there is Super-Evolved, which is harder to reach, followed by a Penultimate and Ultimate stage. The more of the Original Gene you have, the stronger you can become."

"So, anything like a Level Twelve monster from an evolution line that has enough of the Original Gene-" Carly started before Necrograph interrupted.

"Not necessarily. For instance, the Xyz Girl's brother, Shun. His Rise Falcon has enough of the Original Gene of the Phoenix it can reach an ultimate evolution stage, not enough for it to be powerful. The dragons on the other hand, they have enough to reach an ultimate stage and make it a godly one."

Carly gulped.

Smirking under his hood, Necrograph concluded his lecture. "Of course, there are other ways to evolve without enough of the Original Gene. The girls' Ace Monsters were blessed by my sister, which allows them to not only evolve past a regular evolved form, but completely skip the middle stage. You should know, you saw Rin use Winter Bell's penultimate form."

Looking up at the moon, Necrograph extended his arm, conjuring up a portal. "We've ran out of time my dear. I'll deliver this information to her and get back to you when the time is ready. Academia may be destroyed the day after tomorrow, and the Duel Temple would be in the public eye afterwards. I can only imagine the controversy it'll create."

In a flash of lightning, Necrograph disappeared, taking the chill with him.

" _This fight will test everyone across all dimensions."_

* * *

Cards in this chapter

** Yugo's cards**

Speedroid Hex-Eyed Dice

500 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 5/ Machine/ Tuner/ Effect

If this card is Normal, Special or Flip Summoned: You can add 1 "Speedroid" monster from your Deck to your hand. A "Hi-Speedroid" Synchro Monster summoned using this card as Material gains this effect.

If this card is Synchro Summoned: Draw 2 cards.

Speedroid Otoshidriver

0 ATK/ 3000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 7/ Machine/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card (from your hand) if you control a "Speedroid" Tuner monster. (You can only Special Summon "Speedroid Otoshidraiver" once per turn this way). Up to twice per turn: You can reduce this card's Level by 1 and make it lose 500 DEF; Special Summon 1 "Speedroid Stack Token" to your field (Machine-Type/ WIND/ Level 1/ ATK 0/ DEF 0). During the Damage Step, if a WIND monster you control battles an opponent's monster (Quick Effect): You can banish this card in you GY; target 1 of those battling monsters, its ATK becomes equal to its original ATK.

Speedroid Blue-Eyed Dice

400 ATK/ 1000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Machine/ Tuner/ Effect

If this card is Normal Summoned: You can draw 1 card and reveal it. If the revealed card is a Level 3 or lower "Speedroid" monster: Special Summon it, otherwise add it to your hand. A Synchro Monster that was summoned using this card as Material gains this effect.

If this card is Synchro Summoned: Destroy it.

Speedroid Reboundball

0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Level 6/ P.S 1/ Machine/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ You can Pendulum Summon 1 "Speedroid" monster in addition to your regular Pendulum Summon. Once per turn, during your Main Phase 2: You can Tribute 2 "Speedroid" Tuner Monsters you control; immediately conduct your Battle Phase again.

M/ If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can target 1 "Speedroid" card you control or in you GY; return both this card and that target to your hand.

Clear Wing Fast Dragon

2500 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 7/ P.S. 4/ Dragon/ Synchro/ Pendulum/ Effect

1 Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner WIND monsters

P/ You can send 2 face-up monsters you control (1 "Speedroid" Tuner and 1 non-Tuner WIND monster), whose total Levels you equal 7, to your GY; Special Summon this card from your Pendulum Zone. (This Special Summon is treated as a Synchro Summon).

M/ Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can target 1 monster your opponent controls; until the end of this turn, change its ATK to 0, also it has its effects negated. If this card in the Monster Zone is destroyed: You can place it in your Pendulum Zone.

 **(Note: Yes I know I'm kinda blending both Anime and Manga versions of Fast Dragon. My story, I work the cards the way I want).**

Hi-Speedroid legolancer

2800 ATK/ 2000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 8/ Machine/ Synchro/ Effect

1 WIND Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monster

If you would take battle or effect damage while you control this face-up card: You can negate that damage; and if you do, this card loses ATK and DEF equal to the amount you would have taken. Once per turn: You can banish 1 "Speedroid" monster from your GY; this card's Level becomes the same as that monster's Level, also replace this effect with the original effects of that monster. These changes last until the end of this turn. If this card is destroyed by battle or card effect (Quick Effect): You can send 1 "Hi-Speedroid" monster you control or in your Extra Deck to your GY; Special Summon this card.

Hi-Speedroid Fidgetspeeder

1000 ATK/ 800 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Machine/ Synchro/ Tuner/ Effect

If this card was Special Summoned this turn: You can target 1 Spell/Trap card on the field; destroy it. If this card battles a Special Summoned monster your opponent controls, at the start of the Damage Step: Destroy both this card and that monster. If this card is destroyed and sent to the GY: You can banish both this card and 1 WIND monster in your GY; Special Summon 1 WIND Synchro Monster from your Extra Deck, whose Level equal the total Levels of the monsters banished by this effect. (This Special Summon is treated as a Synchro Summon).

Hi-Speedroid Tako Fighter Kite

1400 ATK/ 2800 DEF/ WIND/ Level 6/ Machine/ Synchro/ Tuner/ Effect

Can attack your opponent directly. If this card inflicts battle damage to your opponent: You can target 1 card on the field; destroy it. If this card is sent to the GY: You can equip it to 1 WIND Synchro Monster you control as an Equip Spell Card with the following effects, but banish it when it leaves the field.

*The equipped monster cannot be destroyed by battle or card effect, also your opponent cannot activate cards or effects if the equipped monster declares an attack or when this card's effect activates. After this card battles an opponent's monster: You can target 1 monster on the field; either destroy it OR; negate that target's effects, also its ATK and DEF become 0.

Desperate Dice Battle

Quick-Play Spell

Activate only if a monster you control battles an opponent's monster. Roll a six-sided dice and apply one of the following effects, depending on the result rolled.

1, 3 or 5: Your opponent's monster cannot activate its effects this turn, also it loses 1000 ATK.

2, 4 or 6: Your monster cannot activate its effects this turn, also it loses 1000 ATK.

Speedroid Downshift

Quick-Play Spell

Target 1 "Speedroid" monster you control: Special Summon, from your Extra Deck, 1 "Hi-Speedroid" monster with a Lever lower than the targeted monster, ignoring the summoning conditions; and if you do, destroy the targeted monster. You can banish this card from your GY: Return 1 of your banished "Speedroid" monsters to your GY.

Synchro Fighter

Counter Trap

Activate if a Synchro Monster you control battles an opponent's monster. Target that Synchro Monster you control: That target cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects, also it gains 1000 ATK and DEF, until the end of the Battle Phase. If a Synchro Monster you control would be destroyed by battle or card effect while this card is in your GY: You can banish this card instead; and if you do, for the rest of this turn, that monster cannot be destroyed by battle or card effect, also all battle damage you take involving that monster is halved.

Speedroid Nitro Boost

Continuous Trap

Destroy this card if this is the only "Speedroid" card on the field. If a card or effect that would inflict damage to either player's LP is activated (Quick Effect): You can negate that effect; and if you do, you can target 1 WIND monster you control, it gains ATK equal to the amount of damage negated.

**Rin's cards**

En Angel – Kaze

1400 ATK/ 1600 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Spellcaster/ Tuner/ Effect

(This card is always treated as a "Wind Witch" card).

If you control no monsters: You can Special Summon this card from your hand; and if you do, you can Special Summon 1 other "En" or "Wind Witch" monster from your hand. You can only Special Summon "En Angel – Kaze" once per turn this way. If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can reveal any number of "En" cards in your hand; inflict 300 damage to your opponent for each one. If this card is sent to the GY as Synchro Material: You can add 1 Continuous Spell from your Deck to your hand. You can only use each of the above effects of "En Angel – Kaze" once per turn. A Synchro Monster that was Summoned using this card as Material gains this effect.

*Once per turn: You can inflict damage to your opponent equal to the number of cards in their hand X300.

Wind Witch – Fog Bell

0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Spellcaster/ Effect

If this card is Special Summoned: You can add 1 "Wind Witch" or "Bell Chime" Spell/Trap card from your Deck to your hand. You can target up to 2 "Wind Witch" monsters you control and declare a Level from 1 to 4; those targets become the declared Level until the End Phase of this turn. (You can only use each of the above effects of "Wind Witch – Fog Bell" once per turn). (Quick Effect): You can banish this card in your GY; all "Wind Witch" monsters you control gain ATK and DEF equal to their Level X100, and if they do, all monsters your opponent controls lose ATK and DEF equal to their Level X100.

Wind Witch – Slush Bell

1800 ATK/ 1800 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Spellcaster/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card from your hand by banishing 1 WIND monster from your GY. You can only Special Summon "Wind Witch – Slush Bell" once per turn this way. If this card is Special Summoned: You can add 1 "Wind Witch" monster from your GY, face-up in your Extra Deck or that is banished to your hand, and if you do, inflict damage to your opponent equal to that monster's Level X200.

Wind Witch – Frozen Bell

800 ATK/ 800 DEF/ WIND/ Level 2/ Spellcaster/ Tuner/ Effect

You can Special Summon this card from your hand if you control a face-up WIND monster. You can only Special Summon "Wind Witch – Frozen bell" once per turn this way. If this card was Special Summoned this turn: You can draw 1 card; and if you do, inflict 500 damage to your opponent.

Wind Witch – Hail Bell

1900 ATK/ 1900 DEF/ WIND/ Level 5/ Spellcaster/ Effect

If your opponent activates a card or effect while you control a "Wind Witch" Monster (Quick Effect): You can discard this card from your hand; negate that card or Effect, and if you do, destroy it. If this card is Special Summoned: You can target 1 card in the Field; destroy it.

Wind Witch – Frost Bell

100 ATK/ 500 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ P.S. 0/ WIND/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ If you Special Summon a WIND monster: You can send 1 "Bell Chime" Spell or Trap card from your Deck to your GY. During either player's Battle Phase (Quick Effect): You can target 1 "Bell Chime" Spell/Trap card in your GY; set it in your Spell/Trap Zone, but banish it when it leaves the field. You can only use each Pendulum Effect of "Wind Witch – Frost Bell" once per turn.

M/ If this card is removed from the field: You can place it in your Pendulum Zone. You can send this card face-up in your Extra Deck to your GY: Set 1 "Wind Witch" card from your GY on your field. You can only use 1 effect of "Wind Witch – Frost Bell" per turn, and only once that turn.

Wind Witch – Iceberg Bell

2000 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Level 5/ P.S. 5/ Spellcaster/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ (Quick Effect): You can target 1 "Wind Witch" monster in your Pendulum Zone; Special Summon it. If you inflict battle or effect damage to your opponent (Quick Effect): You can send 1 "Wind Witch" monster from your Deck to your GY. You can only use each Pendulum Effect of "Wind Witch – Iceberg Bell" once per turn.

M/ Your opponent cannot target monsters you control for attacks, except this face-up card. At the end of the Damage Step, if this card battled an opponent's monster and is still face-up on the field: You can negate that monster's effects, and if you do, inflict 1000 damage to your opponent.

Wind Witch – Glacier Bell

900 ATK/ 2500 DEF/ WIND/ Level 3/ Spellcaster/ Synchro/ Tuner/ Effect

1 Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters

If a face-up "Wind Witch" monster you control would be destroyed while you control this face-up card: You can send 1 "Wind Witch" monster from your Deck to your GY instead. (This effect can be used a number of times per turn, up to the number of material used in this card's Synchro Summon). A WIND Synchro Monster summoned using this card as Material gains this effect.

*If this card is Synchro Summoned: You can target 1 WIND monster in your GY; add it to your hand.

Wind Witch – Diamond Bell

2800 ATK/ 30000 DEF/ WIND/ Level 8/ Spellcaster/ Synchro/ Effect

1 Tuner + 1+ non-Tuner monsters

Gains 100 ATK and DEF for each monster in both player's GY. The following effects are negated unless this card was Synchro Summoned using a Synchro monster as Material. Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can target 1 monster face-up on the field or in the GY; replace this effects with the effects of that monster, until the end of this turn. During either player's Battle Phase: You can target 1 monster in your GY with a Level equal to or less than this card's Level; Special Summon it.

Wind Witch – Absolute Zero Bell

3600 ATK/ 3600 DEF/ WIND/ Level 10/ Spellcaster/ Synchro/ Effect

1 Synchro Tuner + 1 Synchro Monster + 0+ non-Tuner monsters

All monsters your opponent controls lose 100 ATK and DEF for each monster in both player's GY. You can only use each of the following effects of "Wind Witch – Absolute Zero Bell" once per turn. (Quick Effect): You can target 1 monster face-up on the field or in the GY; negate the effects of that target, and if you do, replace this effects with the effects of that monster (these changes last until the end of this turn). During either player's Battle Phase: You can Special Summon 1 monster from your Deck, whose Levels is equal to or lower than this card's Level.

En Power

Continuous Spell

Once per turn, you can target 1 monster you control: Until the end of this turn, if its effects are negated; its effects are no longer negated, also it cannot be destroyed by card effects and gains 800 ATK and DEF for each "En" Continuous Spell Card you control. (Quick Effect): You can tribute this face-up card you control and target 1 Monster you control; that target gains 200 ATK for each Spell/Trap Card you control.

Wind-Reverberating Bell Chime

Normal Trap

Activate 1 of the following effects.

Add 2 "Wind Witch" or "Bell Chime" cards from your GY to your hand.

Shuffle 5 "Wind Witch" or "Bell Chime" cards from your GY into tour Deck; and if you do, draw 1 card.

During the Battle Phase: You can banish this card in your GY; Synchro Summon 1 "Wind Witch" monster from your Extra Deck, using monsters you control as Synchro Material.

Cemetery-Wind Bell Chime

Continuous Trap

Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can target 1 "Wind Witch" monster you control; Special Summon, from your GY, 1 "Wind Witch" monster with an equal or lower Level. If this card is destroyed, destroy all monsters summoned by the above effect.

Wind-Echoing Bell Chime

Continuous Trap

Once per turn, if a "Wind Witch" monster you control is destroyed: You can add 1 "Wind Witch" monster from your Deck to your hand.

Wind-Resonating Bell Chime

Continuous Trap

Once per turn: You can target 1 "Wind Witch" monster in your GY, Special Summon it with its effects negated, and if you do, immediately after this effect resolves; Synchro Summon 1 "Wind Witch" monster from your Extra Deck (face-up or face-down), using only the summoned monster and 1 other monster you control as Material.

* * *

 **Roughly two months since the last update, not bad if I do say so myself.**

 **Today was all about Yugo and Rin and there first back in Synchro. Sorry if the character interactions felt short, I actually wrote the duel part of the chapter first before going back starting from the beginning. And yes, they did do some random fourth wall breaking, because why the heck not! Of course, I didn't know when and where to interject so it's mostly during the duel. If you didn't like, don't worry this was just a onetime thing.**

 **Not much in terms of plot or characters, Rin was showing a couple insecurities about how Yugo was the only one concerned for her during the Academia war, as well as banishing Yugo to the Friend Zone. Sorry shippers, these two are gonna take a while before A) Yugo stops being a baby and tells her how he feels, and B) Rin stops being oblivious. And here the girls were knocking Yuya for not realizing Yuzu's feelings for him sooner.**

 **And we get some dialogue from Clear Wing about the family lineage, and the end where Carly starts talking to Necrograph Magician. Some of you may have been expecting a secret fourth Universe Magician presiding over death, but I bet no one suspected Carly to possibly be a double agent working against Cronus. More to come…**

 **A good portion of their conversation was about why the dragons were so powerful, and how 'evolution' in Duel Monster Spirits works. Sort of Digimon/Pokémon-esque with the tier concept, but it fits. More to come in a later chapter, which actually isn't that far off.**

 **Not much else to say other than review shout outs.**

 **MarBere123: Ah thank you.**

 **Hyphen 101: Don't feel bad, I appreciate well-constructed criticism, it helps me improve as a writer…san. As for your nitpicks, I feel the need to offer a rebuttal just to explain myself.**

 **Regarding Yuya having the Fusion Spell, that card was originally meant to be used by Yusho, but I ended up having the use it in the duel. Besides, Yuya's a YGO protag, you know he can have as many cards as the plot demands it.**

 **And as for your problem with Sawatari Synchro Summoning, I will admit, your remark about how characters were defined by their choice of summoning methods does make sense. Sawatari did obsess over Pendulum since his debut, and that was a goal for him. But I feel that did harm him a bit. Yes, he did get Pendulum Summoning eventually, and while he did grow as a duelist he still ultimately contributed little to the plot other than comic relief.**

 **I remember during the Zarc duel and he let go of Crow's card, my immediate reaction was, "Come on Shingo, you had ONE job! It was so simple even YOU couldn't have goofed up!"**

 **So I think Sawatari learning the other summoning methods would have given him something to do. Besides he's a Pendulum Duelist, he'd need a Link Monster to stand a chance in the Link Dimension. And as for your suggestion about creating a new 2800 ATK ace monster, A) Black Feather Dragon wasn't originally meant to exist, it was only created after the writers promoted Crow from 'Final Boss of the arc' to 'main character', amd B) I actually forgot Shark Drake existed, I mean Shark didn't really use it during the final third of ZeXal at all, he was more like Reiji in that he was using multiple boss monsters, but even Reiji still had his preferences to Hell Armageddon and the Elemental trio. Shark completely forgot about Shark Drake.**

 **And regarding the Ninja brothers, I'm working on something. Though full disclosure, I didn't mind that Tsukkikage pretty much never dueled, he contributed to the Lancers just by virtue of being a ninja.**

 **Epsilon Tarantula: I'll take your half-baked review as a compliment.**

 **Donjusticia: I kid you not, the last thing I did after posting the last update and going to sleep was watching the Japanese dub of "You're Welcome," don't ask why. And yes, the Dark Dimension are more humane and morally gray compared to Academia or Roger. Which makes future conflicts rather compleicated….**

 **Guest: I'm a busy guy, I'm lucky to get 1 every month.**

 **Guest (Jonah): Not sure what you're going for but thanks.**

 **Next time: Yuto, Ruri and an overprotective big brother!**

 **See you soon!**


	11. The Bird of Freedom

**Necrograph Magician: Hello you adorably stupid humans. I bet you have all been wondering where writer has been these last few months. You are probably angry that he hasn't been more frequent with his updates. Well, and I'm just paraphrasing here, a wise mortal man once said, "Write for yourself, not others." In other words, he is not obligated to continue writing if he doesn't want to...**

 **But in reality he needed time to plan ahead for this story's future. You can't expect him to make things up as he goes along now can you, otherwise this whole project will be a total train wreck. Just like how the actual Arc V ended, am I right?**

 **Biograph Magician: Actually, I think if you reexamine the ending form an analytical standpoint, it doesn't feel as bad as it does from an enjoyment perspective.**

 **Necrograph: Oh would you look at that, I think I hear a crying child.**

 **Biograph: WHERE!? *rockets off like Superman.***

 **Necrograph: *snicker* Works every time. Now then, since you are continuing to slowly die through the process of aging, why don't you read this chapter, so that when I come to end your life, I don't pity you. Not that I can, seeing as how I don't have actual emotions, but it makes the job less depressing on your end.**

 **(Oh, and the following also contains spoilers for SoR decks. You may see a few similarities between Ruri's monsters and the Salvation Seraphim deck she uses there)**

* * *

"Can I look know?" Ruri asked, she and Yuto following her brother and Dennis since they returned to the Xyz Dimension, leaving them very little time to just look around. Like Shun said, about one-third of the glorious metropolis had been rebuilt, reconstruction struggling with financial aid and workers, even with assistance from three other dimensions.

" _To be fair,"_ Ruri thought, " _Apart from the Pendulum Dimension, the other dimensions had their own issues to work out."_

"And we're almost there~" Dennis said excitedly. Looking around, the Xyz duo realized that they were arriving at the Heartland Duel School, which, apart from a few spots on the roof, was almost completely refurbished. It was Saturday, so apart from a few club meetings or repairs, there would be no one there.

"Okay," Yuto sighed, tired of the lack of answers. "What are you guys-"

"Ruri!" someone exclaimed as the group turned a corner. Halting in their tracks, Yuto and Ruri stood motionless as Sayaka ran up and wrapped Ruri in a hug.

"Welcome back, Ruri, Yuto." Sayaka said softly, glad to see her friend again after so long. Chuckling, Ruri softly patted the girl on her head.

"I missed you too Sayaka." Ruri soothed, having heard how upset hew friend was after her kidnapping.

"Now this is such a touching moment." Came a smooth female voice. Turning her attention away from Sayaka, Ruri was surprised by the person, or rather, the people, she saw.

"Rio! Michael!" Ruri exclaimed joyfully towards the two people. One, the girl who had spoken, had dark pink eyes, dark blue hair with light blue bangs, and wore a white jacket adorned with a conch shell-like ornament over a light pink shirt, black stockings, a white skirt and shoes. The other was a young man with emerald green eyes and short, slightly curly pink hair, wearing red and white colored set of formal medieval-style attire.

"You didn't think I'd miss my rival's homecoming now, did you?" Rio teased playfully, holding out her hand. "Or did you not want me to come?"

"No, I'm glad." Ruri smiled, giving the girl a handshake. The two had a bit of a rivalry in the past prior to the invasion, but it was always civil and friendly. It helps that they had a lot in common, including similar deck themes and, oddly enough, an older brother. Rio had often joked that if they got a few more girls with older brothers, they could've started a club.

"Sorry that our families couldn't make it," the boy, Michael, apologized politely. "Chris is working with Kaito and our respective fathers on studying the gap between dimensions, while Thomas is competing in Nationals."

"That's fine Michael." Yuto reassured, glad that people were able to come welcome him and Ruri home at all. "Speaking of Kaito, how is he doing?"

Michael smiled. "He's been spending a lot of time with his family. It's nice to see such familial love," he explained, before his smile began to waver. "I just wish we were there to keep him from losing them in the first place."

"Don't beat yourself up." Shun interjected, "No one knew Academia was going to attack. Nor did they expect for them to put up a barrier and isolate Heartland from the rest of the world."

"Or for them to card the only person still in the city who could reverse engineer their technology." Yuto pipped up. "Honestly, I'm glad there were a few people outside the city when this place turned into hell on earth."

Rio laughed. "Tell that to Anna. That girl would not stop freaking out when she heard about what happened. It was quite the scene."

Dennis raised his brow. "Anna? Who's that?"

"Allen's sister." The blue haired girl replied casually. "Unlike me and Ruri, she's the older sibling. She's sort of the 'Shoot First, Ask Questions Later', type."

"And she means that literally." Yuto grimaced, memories from a bad experience bubbling up in his mind. "That girl is a trigger happy lunatic," he shuddered.

"Oh come now," Dennis dismissed, "She can't be that bad."

"Three, two, one." Rio countered on her fingers before pointing to something behind the group. Turning around, the natives of Heartland sighed, while Dennis widened his eyes in surprise. It was Allen and another person, flying towards them on what looked like a cannon.

"Okay," Dennis calmly remarked over the sound of Allen's screams, "Never seen that before."

…..

"Sorry about the rough landing little bro," Anna remarked, embarrassed. "But hey, least I nailed it." She said proudly, only to receive a dazed grumble from her brother.

Ruri sighed with amusement, Anna hadn't changed a bit. Her hair was still the same mix of red and orange, and her outfit was her typical wear; a pink and white shirt, black compression shorts, and boots that matched her shirt. The girl in question was currently sitting atop her cannon, looking at Dennis with a hint of malcontent.

"So," she said with a subtle undertone of anger, "You're the guy who greenlit the destruction of the city and turned Ruri over to that Yaoi-"

"Yuri." Yuto corrected.

"-Yuri guy."

"Would it help if I said I was very, _very_ sorry?" Dennis cowered.

Anna thought about it for a moment. "Fine. But I've got my eye on you," she warned, eyes narrowed.

Backing up nervously, Dennis decided to change the topic of conversation. "So…that's an impressive looking cannon you've got there."

"Thanks. Made it myself." Anna preened, stroking the side of her machine before chuckling gleefully. "You should have seen the look on Allen's face when I took him flying for the first time."

"I still get dizzy." Allen groaned, clutching his head as Sayaka helped him to his feet. "Did you really have to make that crazy thing just because some guy stood you up?"

"HE HAD IT COMING!" Anna bellowed, knocking her brother onto the floor, much to Sayaka's dismay.

"Oh not again," she whined, picking the stunned Allen back up. "So Rio, where's your brother?"

The girl shrugged. "You know how Ryoga is. Not exactly the social type."

"Well since he's not coming, what are we doing still just hanging around," Asked Yuto, eager to get going. "I want to see more of the city."

"Right Yuto." Dennis said pleasantly, "Since we're all here, I think it's time we gave you two a proper welcome."

And so the group departed the Duel School, heading towards the observatory atop Heartland Tower. Shun wrapped an arm around Ruri's shoulder, pulling the girl into an uncomfortably tight hold. Smiling awkwardly, Ruri gently removed her brother's arm before stepping aside.

" _What was that about?"_

….

"What?"

"I said we can take the stairs." Shun replied as the elevators closed, cutting them off from their friends. "This place is still under partial repair, and the cables could still be unstable."

"So," Ruri questioned, confused by her brother's logic, "You'd rather take the stairs to the top of the largest building in the city, rather than the elevator?"

'"I'm only looking out for you Ruri."

….

I'm only looking out for you Ruri.

That was his answer for everything; when he said she couldn't go on any of the rides at the Heartland Theme Park. When they went skating and Shun said she couldn't because she would scrape her knee. When they went to the library and Shun handed her a bunch of old children's books that were 'appropriate' for someone her age. Each time saying the exact same thing.

I'm only looking out for you Ruri.

Again, and again, for nearly _**four hours**_.

" _Why is he treating me like a child?"_ Ruri kept asking herself, anger slowly reaching a breaking point.

Until she snapped, when all of a sudden, Shun ripped an ice cream cone out of her hand before she could even get a lick in.

"I'm only looking-"

"WOULD YOU STOP THAT!?"

Everyone stood still, shocked by Ruri's sudden outburst. Yuto silently sighed, already knowing something was going to happen.

"What could be so dangerous about an ice cream cone?" Ruri growled, eyes flaming with anger. Her friends backed away from the two siblings, surprised by this new side of her.

"It's strawberry." Shun replied sternly. "Yugo told me that Rin was allergic so-" He began to explain before his sister cut him off.

"You thought that I somehow caught that allergy from her?" She asked incredulously. "Do you even hear yourself right now!? That is ridiculous!"

"Oh boy." Rio sighed.

"What?" Dennis asked curiously.

"Any person with a sibling knows when another bunch of siblings are going to fight." Anna answered with a sigh. "It means everyone else suffers as a result."

"Although," Michael pipped up, "In this case, it's Yuto who suffers most."

"What is the big deal Ruri?"

"The big deal," Ruri pointed her finger at Shun, "Is that you're treating me like a child! I'm sixteen years old!"

"And," Shun shot back, calmly but with the slightest edge. "Not only am I going to be twenty in a few months, but regardless I am still your older brother. It's still my job to take care of you."

"Not to this extent!" the girl shouted back. "I can handle myself without you watching me like a hawk!"

"Really, because the last time I wasn't watching you, you got _kidnapped_!"

"Oh, like you _knew_ the Professor started that blasted war just because he needed me to bring back Ray! At least I put up a fight against Yuri! I swear, you always go overboard on everything you do!"

"Name one time!"

"There was the time you dueled Sora in the Maiami Championship," Dennis interrupting, much to the annoyance of both siblings. "You carpet bombed the whole Action Field. Then there was our duel in the Friendship Cup where you bombed me from orbit."

"BUTT OUT!" Shun roared furiously, sounding like he had been possessed by a demon to Dennis's ear. The entertainment duelist whimpered and hide behind Yuto.

"Well, what about the time _you_ pushed Kaito off a cliff!"

"I was brainwashed by a bug!"

"Um, what exactly happened while we were stuck outside the city?" A puzzled Michael questioned.

"Eh, tell you later." Yuto sighed heavily as the Kurosakis continued their shouting match.

"I lost you and spent months trying to get you back, only to have you ripped away from me again. Do you honestly expect me not to be protective!?"

"Yuto was trapped inside Yuya longer than I was in Yuzu, and yet you aren't being such a control-freak with him!"

"He's the reincarnation of the Anti-Christ! He can handle himself!"

"Gee, thanks for bringing that whole thing up," groaned Yuto.

"Back me up on this Yuto!" The siblings demanded concurrently.

"Ugh, well, the thing is," Yuto stammered, wishing he was somewhere else at the moment. Whenever the two Kurosakis fought, he had to get involved. But, as both Ruri's boyfriend and Shun's best friend, it was a no win situation every time. "I don't think you are unjustified in how you feel."

"SEE! He agrees with me! No he doesn't, he agrees with me!" They roared furiously at each other.

"Gentlemen, lady," Dennis soothed, managing the courage to step back into the ring. "Why don't we settle this the best way we know how; a duel. And I have the perfect idea."

The two siblings silently thought it over before replying. "Alright." "Sure."

"Excellent!" Dennis clapped his hands. "Now then, first thing to know is that, for this to work, Yuto will join you."

"WHAT!?" Said boy exclaimed.

"Don't worry. I have a plan," Dennis whispered before returning to his explanation. "This will be an irregular tag duel. One of the three of you will have double the amount of Life Points, as in eight thousand. The other two will share a field and Graveyard, but not Life Points. No, those will still be separate. Damage will be dealt to whichever player is currently in control of the field.

"For example, should Kurosaki and Ruri be the team," the two siblings scoffed at that notion. "Then should Kurosaki take his turn, he will be in control of the field for all of Yuto's next turn, where only he will take damage. Once it becomes Ruri's turn, she will be in control until her brother's next turn and take all possible instances of damage. Is this unclear in anyway."

"No."

"Perfectly clear."

"Great. Oh, and to help make things more interesting, this will also be an Action Duel. Just to spice things up."

"This seems like a great plan and all," Michael stepped up. "But one question. How do we decide who gets to be on a team, and who gets to fight alone?"

Dennis grinned like a Cheshire cat. Reaching into his pocket, he pulled out a small, colorful dice adorned with stars and clown faces. "I thought we'd roll for it."

…

" _Note to self,"_ Yuto growled to himself, eyeing Dennis with fury. _"When this is over, I need to murder Dennis."_

The dice roll result ended with Shun getting to be the solo duelist while he and Ruri were the team. Yuto figured out what Dennis was trying to do; get the two feuding siblings to settle their differences by defeating a common enemy. Unfortunately for the both of them, he forgot to use his loaded dice for the role.

"I hope this works." Rio prayed, leaning back against the wall. No one else was around except for their group, meaning this wouldn't gather a lot of unwanted attention.

"Ladies and gentlemen!" Dennis bombastically shouted into a microphone, sitting at a makeshift table with Allen and Sayaka sitting at his sides. Regardless of the circumstances, his Entertainer instincts still told him to try and make something positive out of this duel. "What we have here for you today is a duel between three of Heartland's finest competing in a unique format of dueling. I'd introduce everyone, but since we already know everything and everyone involved in this duel, we might as well…"

"Start!" With a flick of the wrist, floating platforms formed as the Action Cards scattered across the field.

"DUEL!" The three Duelists shouted in unison.

 **Ruri**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **Yuto**

 **4000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

 **VS.**

 **Shun**

 **8000 LP**

 **5 cards in Hand**

"I'll go first." Ruri began, stepping forward with a determined look on her face. "Using the Scale Zero Lyrical Luscinia Lapis Lazuli Lark-"

"Try saying that five times fast." Allen whispered to Sayaka, who gave him a nudge to be quiet.

"-and the Scale Two Lyrical Luscinia Chalcedony Cardinal, I set the Pendulum Scale!" Ruri proclaimed, placing the two half-Monster half-Spell cards on the edges of her Duel Disk.

Immediately, the two pillars of light appeared, with two small bird girls rising up within each one. The first girl was dressed in the robes of an Aztec priestess. A feather headdress rested in front of her blue hair, which was short and spiked upwards like a plume of feathers, while a necklace of lapis lazuli draped around her neck.

On the other side was a girl with a color scheme that brought to mind a cardinal. Her skin was black and her hair was a plume of dark red styled like a Mohawk. She wore a white exercise band over her forehead, a single blue chalcedony gem in the center.

"Ruri begins her opening move by setting up her Pendulum Scales!" Dennis spoke into the microphone. "Allen, Sayaka, your thoughts?"

"Is it just me, or does that Lark kinda feel like a reference to something?" Allen said, unable to shake the strange feeling he had when he looked at Lapis Lazuli Lark.

"Regardless of such feelings, Ruri started herself off on a good foot. Since so many of her monsters have effects that activate upon their Special Summon," Sayaka explained, "Having set up a Pendulum Scale will definitely help her."

"True!" Dennis agreed before turning his gaze towards Yuto. "However, her Scales are Zero and Two, which won't be doing Yuto any favors with such a low range."

"He's not wrong." Yuto whispered. "We're sharing the field remember, so unless you change your Scales, I can't Pendulum Summon on my turn."

"Don't worry, I've got this." Ruri responded without so much as looking at Yuto, causing the boy to gulp nervously. He didn't like this side of Ruri.

"Since Lapis Lazuli Lark was activated, her effect allows me to add a Level one monster from my Deck to my hand." Ruri continued. "I use this effect to add a Lyrical Luscinia monster to my hand, and since there are no monsters on the field, I can Special Summon that monster. Come forth, Lyrical Luscinia – Turquoise Warbler!"

Appearing to Ruri's field was a petite bird girl wearing a yellow-green body suit with turquoise-blue tipped feathers, and a bird-shaped helmet with turquoise gems for eyes on her head.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Turquoise Warbler:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 200 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"Since Turquoise Warbler was Special Summoned, her effect allows me to Special Summon another Lyrical Luscinia monster from my hand! Come, Cobalt Sparrow!"

Joining the first monster, a young bird girl in an earth-brown and crème body suit with a necklace of cobalt gems appeared, happily soaring in the sky before posing next to Turquoise Warbler.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Cobalt Sparrow:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"Chalcedony Cardinal's Pendulum Effect!" Ruri declared, pointing towards her monster. "Each time I Special Summon a monster, I can increase or decrease the card's Scale by two. Since I Special Summoned twice, her Scale increases by four!"

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Chalcedony Cardinal: Scale 6**

"Woah!" Dennis exclaimed in English. "A Pendulum Monster that raises it Scale with every Special Summon. Now Yuto doesn't have to worry about Chalcedony Cardinal's original Scale next turn!"

From the side, Rio remarked "I'm not that familiar with Pendulum Summoning, regardless of how well known it's become, but that effect seems a little unfair for a Pendulum Monster to have."

"More unfair than her Aspiring Nightingale?" Michael countered.

Rio shrugged. "Fair point."

"You're getting a head of yourself Dennis," Sayaka reprimanded back at the table. "Who's to say Yuto even has any monsters to Pendulum Summon on his turn?"

"She's right." Allen agreed. "Yuto's more about Traps than monsters, so I wouldn't be surprised if he doesn't have any in his hand."

"And since Cobalt Sparrow was Special Summoned, her effect enables me to add another copy of itself from my Deck to my hand." Ruri called as she added the second Cobalt Sparrow to her hand. "And now, with the set Pendulum Scale, I can summon monsters with Levels One through Five!"

On command, a yellow crystal Pendulum began swinging to and fro, tracing an arc of light as it moved in between the two cards in Ruri's Pendulum Zones.

"Shining songbirds who fly across the heavens! Guided by the arc of light, flock together and awaken your song! Pendulum Shoukan!" Ruri proclaimed at the top of her lungs. "Fly down, my monsters! Lyrical Luscinia – Tourmaline Thrush! And also Lyrical Luscinia – Aquamarine Martin!"

A pink portal opened up and breached the sky, a pair of yellow and white lights shooting out and landing on the ground, transforming into two more bird girls who joined Ruri's flock. The first bird girl had brown freckles, a head of short curly orange hair beneath her yellow and brown bird helmet, and a matching body suit while she flew around on a hang glider. The second girl wore a white skin-tight body suit that had a bit of a futuristic look to it. Her wings and bird helmet were a bright shade of light blue, and her eyes were covered up by a bright red visor.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Tourmaline Thrush:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aquamarine Martin:** _ **300 ATK**_ **/ 200 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"KITA!" Dennis cried out. "Ruri's Pendulum Summoning debut! Bringing out two monsters at once and making her flock grow in size! Such is the beauty of Pendulum Summoning!"

"Wait, she still has the other copy of Cobalt Sparrow in her hand, so why didn't she summon that?" A curious Allen asked.

"Allen don't you remember? If Ruri summoned the other Cobalt Sparrow, then she can't use the effect of Aquamarine Martin." Sayaka answered.

"Oh right." Allen responded. "Cut me some slack, I haven't seen her Duel in a while, so her card effects are all Greek to me."

"So, you really do have Pendulum Summoning." The elder Kurosaki muttered, staring at his sister's field.

"Unlike you, who still refuses to pick up the summoning method despite Akaba Reiji providing you plenty of opportunity to do so." Ruri remarked, unable to resist the urge to tease her brother. "You may think I'm still your weak little sister, but I'm stronger than you now!"

"Don't be mistaken. Just because you can Pendulum Summon doesn't mean you're stronger now than you were before." Shun calmly replied.

"We shall see," Ruri whispered in a tone that only made Yuto even more nervous.

" _Why couldn't that die rolled a three or a four_." Yuto whined. Apparently, godly luck with dice rolls was a Yugo only thing.

"Aquamarine Martin, Tourmaline Thrush and Chalcedony Cardinal's effects all activate!" Ruri continued on, "First, since I Special Summoned, Chalcedony Cardinal's Pendulum Scale once again increases by two!"

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Chalcedony Cardinal: Scale 8**

"Next, the effect of Tourmaline Thrush allows me to add a certain type of card from my Deck or Graveyard to my hand." Ruri explained as she added a card from her Deck to her hand. Taking a brief glance at the card, she smiled before resuming her turn. "And finally, the effect of Aquamarine Martin lets me send a Lyrical Luscinia from my Deck to my Graveyard and then Special Summon another copy of that monster. I send another Tourmaline Thrush before summoning the third and final copy!"

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Tourmaline Thrush:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Chalcedony Cardinal: Scale 10**

"And since it was Special Summoned, Tourmaline Thrush allows me to search again. I add Lyrical Luscinia – Bird Chorus from my Deck to my hand." Ruri continued as she revealed a Counter Trap.

Allen visibly winced once he saw the card. "I remember _that_ one, and boy it was annoying."

"How so?" Asked Dennis.

"You'll see." Sayaka answered. "But anyway, Ruri now has five Level One monsters on her and Yuto's field, which means we know what's coming next."

Rio smiled. "It wouldn't be Ruri without her signature multiple material Xyz Summoning."

"I Overlay Level One Lyrical Luscinia – Cobalt Sparrow, Turquoise Warbler, Aquamarine Martin and the two Tourmaline Thrushes!" Ruri declared, causing her monsters to transform into five streams of green light that drained into the black-and-gold galaxy that opened up before her, a pillar of energy rising up immediately afterwards.

"Birds with beautiful wings, gather on the battlefield and take brilliant flight! Xyz Shoukan! Dance in the sky! Rank One! Lyrical Luscinia – Assembly Nightingale!"

Arriving in a flurry of wind and feathers, Ruri's angelic harpy-like monster, with glowing crème and pale blue feathers, robes of the same color with golden bands adorning the shoulders, and a six-eyed bird helmet atop her head, appeared on the field, shining in the light of five glowing green orbs rotating around her body like satellites.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Assembly Nightingale:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 1/ OVU: 5/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Chalcedony Cardinal: Scale 12**

"And here it is folks! Ruri's Ace Monster!" Dennis cheered exuberantly. "And with that summon, Ruri now has a Scale of Zero through Twelve!"

"The effects of Aquamarine Martin and both Tourmaline Thrushes activate upon being used as Xyz Material for the Summon of a Lyrical Luscinia monster." Ruri explained as her monster began glowing brightly. "The Tourmaline Thrushes allow me to attach one Lyrical Luscinia monster from my Deck to the summoned monster as Material. I attach two copies of Sapphire Swallow to my monster as Xyz Material."

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Assembly Nightingale: 7 OVU**

"And then, the effect of Aquamarine Martin allows me to Special Summon a Lyrical Luscinia monster from my Graveyard. With this effect, I revive the final Tourmaline Thrush!"

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Tourmaline Thrush:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"Once again, I use the effect of Tourmaline Thrush to search a card. I add a copy of Lyrical Luscinia – Bird Strike to my hand." Ruri continued before gazing towards her monster. "Of course, you all remember the effect of Assembly Nightingale. For every Overlay Unit she has, she gains one hundred ATK, and the ability to make one direct attack per Overlay Unit!"

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Assembly Nightingale: 0 + (100 X 7) = 700**

"Next, I activate Lapis Lazuli Lark's other Pendulum Effect! Since I control at least two Lyrical Luscinia monsters, Lapis Lazuli Lark Special Summons herself from my Pendulum Zone!" Ruri proclaimed, causing her monster to fly down from her column of light.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Lapis lazuli Lark:** _ **400 ATK**_ **/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ P.S. 0/ Winged Beast/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Of course, since Chalcedony Cardinal's Pendulum Scale is at twelve, it cannot be raised any higher. And now, since I haven't used my Normal Summon, I'll use it to summon the second copy of Cobalt Sparrow I added to my hand!"

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Cobalt Sparrow:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

Grabbing one of the remaining cards in her hand, Ruri took a deep breath before placing it on her Duel Disk. "I activate the card I added to my hand from the effect of the first Tourmaline Thrush. Rank-Up-Magic Lyrical Force hasudo!"

"Nani!" Shun gasped, surprised that his sister would play a Rank-Up card right at the beginning of the Duel.

"Already?" Yuto gasped, having similar feelings to Shun.

"Using Assembly Nightingale as the Material, I Xyz Summon a Lyrical Luscinia monster that is one Rank higher. Then, the monster summoned by this effect gains ATK and DEF equal to the number of Overlay Units attached times one hundred upon being summoned!" Ruri proclaimed as the Overlay Network appeared high above her head, Assembly Nightingale flying inside and causing an explosion of light….and feathers.

"Birds with eyes set upon the sky, aspire to the greatest heights and lift your wings to the heavens! Rank-Up Xyz Change! Rise above the clouds! Rank Two, Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale!"

Soaring out from within the portal, another elegant bird woman flew down onto the heavenly field on both the wing-like sleeves of her dress and a circular crest affixed to her back, decorated with the double "L" symbol of the Lyrical Luscinia. Her skin was the same shade of blue as a lapis lazuli, and her dress resembled that of Assembly Nightingale, feathers a clear, translucent white. Eight orbs of light circled around Aspiring Nightingale, almost as if to create a protective barrier around her.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale:** _ **0 + (100 X 8) = 800 ATK**_ **/ 0 + (100 X 8) = 800 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 2/ OVU: 8/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"Barely five minutes into the Duel, and we've already seen a five Material Xyz Summon and an eight Material Rank-Up!" Dennis remarked, eyes wide with wonder.

"I know!" Allen exclaimed. "Ruri doesn't normally start Ranking-Up her monsters until after a turn or two."

"Goes to show you how serious she's taking this duel." Michael commented, catching the visible departure from Ruri's usual strategy. "Between first turn Rank-Ups and Pendulum Summoning, it almost feels like I'm watching an entirely different person."

"Maybe the last two years have helped her make a few improvements." Rio suggested. "But I agree, this isn't like her. Shun must have really gotten under her skin for her to bring out Aspiring Nightingale from the start."

"Frankly I'm glad Allen knows better than to make me angry." Anna casually remarked, "He learned his lesson after what happened last time."

"I can already imagine how that worked out." Rio quipped, picturing the girl chasing her brother around with that flying canon of hers.

Yuto grimaced, his friends were right. He knew Ruri wanted to prove to her brother that she could handle herself, and to get him to stop fussing over her, but he didn't want to see her drive herself crazy.

"And now, using my remaining three monsters, I once again construct the Overlay Network!" Ruri continued as her three other monsters enter another galaxy portal whilst she chanted.

"Song of the supporting bird, harmonize with your flock and shine! Xyz Summon! Fly down, Rank one! Lyrical Luscinia – Recite Starling!"

Appearing next to Aspiring Nightingale was a purple skinned bird woman in a dark purple and blue outfit, decorated by yellow star markings.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Recite Starling: 0 ATK/** _ **0 DEF**_ **/ WIND/ Rank 1/ OVU: 3/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"The inherited effect of Tourmaline Thrush activates, attaching another Turquoise Warbler from my Deck to Recite Starling."

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Recite Starling: 4 OVU**

"And then, Recite Starling's own effect activates upon being Xyz Summoned! I target one monster on the field and that target gains three hundred ATK and DEF for each Overlay Unit attached to Recite Starling. I target Aspiring Nightingale, and since Recite Starling has four Overlay Units, Aspiring Nightingale gains twelve hundred ATK and DEF!

 **Lyrical Luscinia Aspiring Nightingale: 800 + (300 X 4) = 2000 ATK/ 800 + (300 X 4) = 2000 DEF**

"Next I use Recite Starling's other effect." Ruri continued.

"Is she ever gonna end her turn?" Anna asked, finding it hard to keep track with Ruri's lengthy turn.

"I detach an Overlay Unit in order to add a Winged Beast monster from my Deck to my hand." Ruri explained as an orb of light disappeared in front of Starling's chest, before she added the final Turquoise Warbler from her Deck to her hand.

"With that done, I use the effect of Aspiring Nightingale! Once per turn, I can attach a number of Lyrical Luscinia cards from my hand, field, Graveyard or attached as Overlay Units to Xyz Monsters I control to Aspiring Nightingale as Material, up to her original Rank!" Ruri explained as her monster's eyes and feathers glowed with a hot white light. "I attach the Tourmaline Thrush I detached from Recite Starling to my monster as another Overlay Unit!"

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale: 9 OVU**

"Well that effect seems a little…." Dennis trailed before his sentence was finished by his co-commentators.

"Broken."

"Too good to be used on a Rank Two."

"Took the words right out of my mouth." The entertainer remarked.

"That's nothing." Allen scoffed. "On its own, Aspiring Nightingale's effect isn't that bad. But once Ruri starts ranking-up her monster even further though, that's when it really gets annoying."

"And finally," Ruri concluded after what seemed like an eternity, "I set two cards face down and end my turn." She declared, keeping a single card in hand.

Looking at their shared field, Ruri felt confident in what she had established. _"The copy of Bird Chorus will throw Shun off, and I've set Bird Strike for Yuto to use during his turn. Aspiring Nightingale and Recite Starling will be able to throw off his attacks. Hopefully Yuto has a Pendulum Monster in his hand to reset our Scales, and even then I'm confident enough that we can bounce back should Shun take the lead."_

"I'd say I'm impressed Ruri, but even if you ranked-up on your first turn, it was predictable." Shun remarked sternly. "More importantly, you made one tiny mistake."

"And what would that be?" Ruri asked, just as serious as her brother.

"How strong my resolve to win this duel is." The elder sibling answered. "I've lost the both of you once before, and I made a vow that if I would ever get you back I would never let go. Even if I have to be a 'control-freak' as you so gingerly put it, so be it. Ore no turn. Draw!" Shun declared.

From the sidelines, the group's friends all averted their eyes. They couldn't blame Shun for wanting to keep the person he cared for more than anything else in the world safe after losing her, but Ruri wasn't a little kid. Was he justified to be a little clingy? Yes. Was he justified to take it to this level? No, but no one dared say anything. An angered Shun was more terrifying than the entirety of Academia's invasion.

"Raid Raptors – Vanishing Lanius shoukan!" Shun shouted, slamming the card onto his duel disk as a green and blue mechanical bird came flying onto his side of the field, the double "R" symbol of the Raid Raptors emblazed on its chest.

 **Raid Raptors – Vanishing Lanius:** _ **1300 ATK**_ **/ 1600 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"Since Vanishing Lanius was summoned this turn, I can summon another one." Shun explained, taking two cards from his hand. "I summon another Vanishing Lanius, and use the effect of that one to summon the final Vanishing Lanius!"

Flicking the cards onto his duel disk, Shun stood proudly as Vanishing Lanius was joined by a set of doppelgängers, screeching loudly as they materialized.

 **Raid Raptors – Vanishing Lanius X2:** _ **1300 ATK**_ **/ 1600 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"You know what," Allen sighed, "I'm not even surprised he opened up with all three Vanishing Lanius in his hand."

"You are not wrong about that my friend." Dennis added, having seen a similar instance when Sora dueled the Raid Raptors user during the Maiami Championship.

"Three level fours…." Michael murmured. "Is he going straight for Rise Falcon, or is he planning something else?"

"I overlay two Vanishing Lanius!" Shun proclaimed, all eyes watching as two of his monsters transformed into streams of purple light before draining into a large galaxy portal that appeared on the ground before him.

"Avian hunter of the afterlife, seek the truth with your dark eyes, and grasp glory with your sharp talons! Xyz Shoukan! Take flight! Rank Four! Raid Raptors – Force Strix!"

Flying out of a cloud of darkness that had exited the portal, a brown and blue mechanical owl, with sharp talons and the Raid Raptors crest atop its head, appeared with a screech, two overlay units circling its wings.

 **Raid Raptors – Force Strix:** _ **500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 4/ OVU: 2/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"Force Strix's effect!" Shun declared. "By detaching one Overlay Unit from it, I can add a Level four or lower Dark Winged Beast monster from my deck to my hand. I choose Raid Raptors – Fuzzy Lanius. Then, since I control another Raid Raptors monster, I can summon Fuzzy Lanius from my hand with its effect!"

A blue summoning portal appeared besides Shun, and from it a purple and blue mechanical bird come to the field, the Raid Raptors crest on the back of its head burning brightly.

 **Raid Raptors – Fuzzy Lanius: 500 ATK/ 1500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"And now I overlay the remaining Vanishing Lanius with Fuzzy Lanius!" Kurosaki exclaimed as another portal opened up. "Come forth, a second Force Strix!"

 **Raid Raptors – Force Strix:** _ **500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 4/ OVU: 2/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"I use the ability of Force Strix again, detaching an Overlay Unit to add another copy of Fuzzy Lanius to my hand." Shun explained. "And since the detached Overlay Unit was Fuzzy Lanius, I can add the final copy of itself to my hand."

"He wasn't going for Rise Falcon immediately." Rio remarked, "He was aiming to swarm his field and defeat Ruri this turn."

Ruri clicked her tongue in annoyance as her brother summoned the two copies of Fuzzy Lanius before overlaying them into the final Force Strix.

 **Raid Raptors – Force Strix:** _ **500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 4/ OVU: 2/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"I use the effect of the last Force Strix in order to add Retrofit Lanius to my hand." Shun continued, plucking the card from his deck. "And then, I activate the Continuous Spell, Raid Raptors – Nest, before using its effect since I control at least two Raid Raptors monsters. With this effect, I add Raid Raptors – Singing Lanius to my hand."

"Between all this swarming and searching, I'm beginning to see the family resemblance." Anna remarked, starting to lose track of the duel between the siblings consistent combos.

"My, it seems that Ruri isn't the only one who knows how to set up a strong field." Dennis commentated, having similar feelings to Allen's sister. "And yet, it still seems like he's setting up for something."

"Well he won't get away with it!" Ruri abruptly declared, before hoping from platform to platform in search of an Action Card.

"Tsk. This is getting out of hand." Yuto grunted as he began his search before quickly finding a card.

"Action Cards won't help you today." Shun stated fiercely, finding an Action Card before both of his opponents. "Action Magic, No Action! All Action Cards added to our hands are destroyed this turn."

Both Ruri and Yuto grunted in displeasure as the cards they had picked up turned to dust after Shun had played his card.

"And Kurosaki seals off the Action Cards!" Dennis roared. "Now without their assistance, Yuto and Ruri will have to rely on skill alone if they want to survive."

"Is that really a bad thing?" Rio asked rhetorically. "I understand that these cards might be a big deal in the Pendulum Dimension, but something about Action Cards just rubs me the wrong way."

"As I have three Raid Raptors," Shun continued, "I can activate Raid Raptors – Sanctuary, and draw two cards." Taking a glance at the cards he had drawn, Shun smirked. "And then, I activate Pot of Greed in order to draw two again."

"Drawing Pot of Greed after activating another draw card?" Sayaka asked with a raised brow.

"I'd say that's ridiculous, but need I bring up the thing with Vanishing Lanius again." Allen remarked.

"Agreed." Dennis added. "They should really put Pot of Greed on the banned list."

Sayaka looked at Dennis with a puzzled expression. "This game _has_ a banned list?"

"Touché." The red head admitted.

"As I control an Xyz Monster," Shun continued, not failing to lose momentum, "the effect of Raid Raptors – Singing Lanius in my hand allows me to Special Summon it!"

A small brown and gold mechanical bird with the Raid Raptors logo on its chest and a headset over its head appeared and joined Shun's growing flock.

 **Raid Raptors – Singing Lanius:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 1800 DEF/ DARK/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

With lightning fast reflexes, Shun slammed another card onto his disk. "Quick-Play Spell, Raid Raptors – Dive! Since I Special Summoned a Raid Raptors monster, I can Special Summon up to two Raid Raptors monsters from my hand. With this effect, I Special Summon Raid Raptors – Retrofit Lanius!"

A blue summoning portal appeared next to Shun, and a small mechanical bird with six wing-like protrusions emerging from its back exited, hovering over to Singing Lanius and filling up Shun's Monster Zones.

 **Raid Raptors – Retrofit Lanius:** _ **800 ATK**_ **/ 1200 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"It took a little while, but now Shun has swarmed his field with five monsters." Dennis said, internally making a comment on how similar the two siblings' dueling styles could be. "Moreover, the effect of Retrofit Lanius allows itself to count as two monsters for an Xyz Summon. Could this mean?"

"It does." Shun answered, gesturing to his field once more. "I overlay Level four Singing Lanius and Retrofit Lanius treated as two!"

Blazing through the air, the two birds of prey transformed into streaks of light before draining into a fourth Overlay Network, a pillar of lightning erupting from within while Shun chanted.

"Obscured falcon, raise your sharpened talons in front of adversity, spread your wings of rebellion! Xyz Summon! Appear! Rank Four! Raid Raptors – Rise Falcon!"

Letting out its signature high-pitched shriek, Rise Falcon descended from the sky, flapping its metallic wings through the air as it stretched its massive talons towards Ruri and her monsters.

 **Raid Raptors – Rise Falcon:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 4/ OVU: 2/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"And with this, Kurosaki has finally brought out his ace monster, the glorious Rise Falcon!" Dennis proclaimed at the top of his lungs. "Though it may only have one hundred ATK, it possesses a powerful effect that makes it a dangerous monster to go up against!"

From the sidelines, Dark Rebellion smirked at Dennis' comment. _"The loud one is right. Did he expect less from a monster that bears the Original Gene of the Phoenix? It is a shame that his Penultimate form has better effects than his Ultimate form, otherwise I would consider him as powerful as myself. Even if Nightingale starts out weaker than any of the eight of us that partnered with Zarc and Ray, her low Rank allows her to achieve multiple forms in a single stage of evolution. That's what makes her dangerous."_

"Rank-Up Magic Raid Force, hasudo!" Shun loudly exclaimed. "I rebuild the Overlay Network with Rise Falcon!"

A large Xyz Portal opened up in the sky above the field, which Rise Falcon flew into at breakneck speeds, creating an explosion of multi-colored light while Shun began chanting once more.

"The unseen bold falcon. Reveal your wings' unknown power here and now! Rank-Up Xyz Change! Come forth! Rank Five! Raid Raptors - Étranger Falcon!"

Bursting from the overlay network with a flash of speed, a mechanical falcon with oversized wings and pulsating energy lines across its armor, descended to the field with a loud shriek.

 **Raid Raptors -** **Étranger** **Falcon:** _ **2000 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 5/ OVU: 3/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

Dark Rebellion looked at the summoned falcon in bewilderment. _"Why would Shun bring out that form of his Falcon rather than Blaze Falcon?"_

Feeling a similar sense of confusion, Ruri stepped forward. "Do you honestly think I'd let you use that monster against me like last time and not have a counter measure in play?"

"Of course not." Shun responded bluntly. "Your cards have a weakness, one that I'm about to exploit. Étranger Falcon's monster effect! By detaching an Overlay Unit, I can target one monster on your field, destroy it, and inflict its ATK as damage to you!"

"Aspiring Nightingale no kouka!" Ruri shot back as her brother's monster began charging up its effect. "Once during either of our turns, I can target one Lyrical Luscinia monster attached to itself as Xyz Material, and until the end of this turn, Aspiring Nightingale gains the effects of that monster. I target Assembly Nightingale, meaning Aspiring Nightingale gains one hundred ATK for each of her Overlay Units!"

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale: 2000 + (100 X 9) = 2900**

"And since Aspiring Nightingale would be destroyed," Ruri continued as a surging blast of energy was shot at her monster, "I can simply detach the Cobalt Sparrow attached to her as material in order to negate her destruction."

Aspiring Nightingale absorbed an overlay unit into her chest, conjuring up a barrier of light that shielded her from Étranger Falcon's assault.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale: 2800 ATK/ 8 OVU**

Dark Rebellion's eyes widened in understanding. _"I see. So that's what he was aiming for. Crafty as always, Shun."_

"I activate Étranger Falcon's effect again!" Shun declared, much to the surprise of his opponents.

" _He knows Ruri can keep detaching Overlay Units to protect her monster."_ Yuto said internally, trying to figure out his opponent's strategy. _"And there's also Ruri's set Bird Chorus to worry about. Wait, that's it!"_

"Counter Trap acti-" Ruri began, before Yuto cut her off.

"Don't do it! He wants you to use Bird Chorus now in order to get rid of it!" He cried out, causing Ruri's eyes to widen with the realization of what her brother was planning.

"Anyone care to share with the rest of the class?" Dennis asked his co-commenters.

"Ruri's set Bird Chorus is a powerful card." Sayaka answered, beginning to explain its effects. "It can negate a card or effect and destroy it, but it requires Ruri to banish a Lyrical Luscinia monster from her field or Graveyard in order to activate."

"But," Allen added on, "Once the effect resolves successfully, Ruri can banish another Lyrical Luscinia in order to reset Bird Chorus."

"Shun is forcing Ruri into a Hobson's choice." Michael said with a surprised face. "Because Étranger Falcon's effect isn't once per turn, he can force Ruri to either keep detaching materials in order to protect Aspiring Nightingale or activate Bird Chorus in order to destroy his monster."

"If Ruri activates Bird Chorus now, she won't have any monsters in her Graveyard to banish in order to reset it." Rio explained, catching onto the elder Kurosaki's plan. "A major weakness of Ruri's deck is that the Xyz Monsters need Overlay Units to become stronger. Either Ruri detaches another one from her monster and weakens it further, but has monsters in her Graveyard to banish for the effects of Bird Chorus, or activate Bird Chorus now and not be able to use it later."

"Well Ruri," Shun asked sternly. "What's it going to be?"

Ruri lowered her gaze, mentally scolding herself for playing along with her brother's plan. "I detach a Sapphire Swallow attached to Aspiring Nightingale in order to protect my monster."

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale: 2700 ATK/ 7 OVU**

"I knew you'd make the right decision." Shun stated in an almost mockingly sweet and brotherly tone.

Ruri scoffed at her brother's teasing. "You may have set me up, but now that I'm onto you, you won't – "

"Étranger Falcon no kouka!" Shun shouted, cutting off Ruri and further astounding the audience. "I detach the final Overlay Unit in order to destroy Aspiring Nightingale."

Swiftly charging up another shot of energy, Étranger Falcon locked its aim onto Aspiring Nightingale, preparing to fire again.

Growling, Ruri declared, "Counter Trap, Lyrical Luscinia – Bird Chorus! If my opponent activates a card or effect while I control a Lyrical Luscinia monster, I can banish a Lyrical Luscinia monster I control or from my graveyard to negate the activation of that card or effect and destroy it! I banish Cobalt Sparrow in order to destroy Étranger Falcon!"

Flipping over to reveal multiple Lyrical Luscinia singing in unison, a combined harmony of voices creating a barrier of energy, Ruri removed the Cobalt Sparrow from her Graveyard before Bird Chorus unleased a massive storm of glowing birds, who flew towards her brother's Falcon before pecking and scratching it until it exploded in a cloud of dust.

"And since this effect resolved," Ruri continued, "Bird Chorus lets me banish the Sapphire Swallow in my Graveyard in order to reset itself."

Signing, Ruri felt humbled. Her brother had managed to use her strategy against her expertly. At the very least, she felt proud for accomplishing one thing in particular.

"You may have forced me to weaken my monster in order to use up Bird Chorus." Ruri calmly explained, some of the anger at her brother slowly dissipating. "But you've lost your strongest monster. None of your Force Strix can counter my monsters."

"Ruri, you've known me for years. Did you really think I wouldn't have a strategy in play?" Shun asked rhetorically before throwing down another card.

"Quick-Play Magic Card, Rank-Up-Magic Death Double Force, hasudo!" Shun exclaimed as his destroyed monster reappeared, before swooping into an Xyz Portal as his master began another chant.

"Supreme falcon. Carry on the wishes of your fallen friends, and fly off to the sky of victory! Rank-Up Xyz Change! Appear, Rank Ten! Raid Raptors – Ultimate Falcon!"

Soaring onto the battlefield, Shun's monster, a black and gold mechanical falcon with massive golden wings appeared, the Raid Raptors insignia burning brightly on its chest as it hovered above the field.

 **Raid Raptors – Ultimate Falcon:** _ **3500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 10/ OVU: 1/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"Ultimate Falcon…" Ruri muttered nervously, intimidated by the presence of one of her brother's strongest monsters.

"This isn't good." Yuto murmured, mind racing with anticipation at what Shun was about to do next.

"I activate Ultimate Falcon's effect!" Shun declared loudly as Ultimate Falcon's red eye began glowing. "By detaching an Overlay Unit, I negate the effects of all monsters you control until the End Phase and have all your monsters lose one thousand ATK! However, since your monsters need their effects to make them strong, they both have their ATK reduced to zero. 'Ekay, Ultimate Falcon!"

Ultimate Falcon shrieked loudly before firing a barrage of beams from its body, striking Ruri's monsters and forcing the bird women to their knees.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale: 0 ATK (Effects Negated)**

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Recite Starling: Effects Negated**

"And don't forget, each of my Force Strixes gains five hundred ATK for each Winged Beast monster I control except themselves." Shun explained. "With four monsters, they each gain fifteen hundred ATK."

 **Raid Raptors – Force Strix X3: 100 + (500 X 3) = 1600 ATK**

"Battle!" Shun exclaimed fiercely. "Raid Raptors – Ultimate Falcon, attack!"

As Ultimate Falcon began charging up a massive orb of dark energy in front of its chest, Ruri began running around the field, before remembering that she couldn't use Action Cards this turn.

"The Phantom Knights of Tattered Banner no kouka!" Yuto declared, revealing a Pendulum Monster in his hand. "If my opponent declares an attack, I can send this card to my Graveyard in order to send up to three Phantom Knights Spell or Traps from my hand to the Graveyard as well. I send all three copies of the Trap, The Phantom Knights of Shadow Veil from my hand to the Graveyard!"

"Hey wait a minute!" Allen called out as a phantasmal knight carrying a torn banner that depicted a ghostly castle appeared before descending into the Graveyard. "Didn't Shadow Veil used to be a Spell card?"

"What, I've had a few upgrades!" Yuto shouted back in annoyance. Sighing, he turned his attention back to the duel. "You know what this means Shun. Once you finish off Ruri's monsters, you'll have to get through all three of my Shadow Veil to get to her first."

"And since I'll only be able to destroy two of them," Shun stated calmly, finishing Yuto's sentence. "You'll still have one monster to keep you safe from Ultimate Falcon's effect once I end my turn."

Shun chuckled lightly. "That is just like you Yuto to be Ruri's knight in shining armor. But you aren't the only one who'll protect her. I'm her brother and even if she doesn't want it, I'll always be protecting her. That's why this is going to hurt me a lot more than it's going to hurt you Ruri. Ultimate Falcon, destroy Aspiring Nightingale! Final Glorious Bright!"

With a glorious shriek, Ultimate Falcon released the pent up dark energy, launching it at Aspiring Nightingale. Flapping her wings in an attempt to defend herself, Aspiring Nightingale created a powerful gust of wind, thought it stood no chance against the power of Ultimate Falcon's attack. The winds dispersed instantly, barely hampering the blast before it collided with Aspiring Nightingale, the force of impact sending Ruri flying backwards as she grunted in pain.

 **Ruri: 4000 – 3500 = 500 LP**

"Ouch!" Dennis exclaimed with one eye closed. "Ruri just took what was basically a direct attack! Moreover, she and Yuto only have one monster left while the elder Kurosaki has three."

Yuto winced as he saw Ruri get back on her feet, before turning his gaze towards his and Ruri's remaining monster. Recite Starling stood no chance against Shun's monsters. If it wasn't for the Shadow Veil he had sent to the Graveyard when Ultimate Falcon attacked, Ruri would be defeated in a matter of moments.

" _But there's still the possibility that Shun won't attack. All he'll have to do is destroy Recite Starling and end his turn, then Ultimate Falcon will deal one thousand damage and finish her off."_

"Don't let up!" the elder Kurosaki shouted fiercely. "Force Strix, attack Recite Starling!"

Screeching loudly, one of the Force Strixes ascended upward before dive bombing into Ruri's remaining monster, destroying her in the blink of an eye.

Shun paused for a moment, debating his next course of action. _"If I keep attacking, Yuto will use the effect of the Shadow Veil to protect Ruri. But if I don't, I'll defeat Ruri. However, that will still leave Yuto's Shadow Veil in the Graveyard, allowing him to use them later on."_

Letting out a chuckle, Shun knew what he had to do. "Force Strix, attack Ruri directly!"

One of the remaining Force Strix began flying fowards at breakneck speed.

"I activate the effects of all three Shadow Veil in my Graveyard!" Yuto abruptly declared as he stepped in front of Ruri. "Since you're attacking directly, I can summon them as Normal Monsters! Came, the three Shadow Veil!"

A shadowy portal opened up before Yuto, three phantom knights on armored horses with ghostly manes and tails of blue fire rising out of it, standing in between their master and the attacking monster.

 **The Phantom Knights of Shadow Veil X3: 0 ATK/** _ **300 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 4/ Warrior/ Normal**

"Pointless!" Shun exclaimed. "Force Strix, destroy Shadow Veil!"

Force Strix continued its attack uninterrupted, its brother Raid Raptor joining him. In an instant, two of Yuto's ghostly warriors were destroyed.

"Since the Shadow Veil left the field, they are banished." Yuto stated calmly, looking at Shun curiously. "You knew what my cards were, and yet you still went through with your attacks."

"You wouldn't have used them to protect yourself." Shun replied back. "I know you Yuto, you'd never leave Ruri to fend for herself. Besides, better to get rid of them now than later. I set one card and end my turn. Since the remaining Shadow Veil has zero ATK, the effect of Ultimate Falcon does nothing to it."

Yuto turned his attention to Ruri. "Are you okay?"

"I've been better," she replied sorrowfully. "I got so caught up in trying to prove to him that I'm not a helpless little kid anymore, I ended up almost losing."

"Ruri I admit, your brother can be a bit crazy at times, but it's only because he missed us." While he may not have appreciated the extent to which Shun's overprotectiveness went, Yuto couldn't blame him for his reasons. "At the same time, I can't blame you for trying to enjoy your life after being locked up for so long, and in more ways than one. When this is over, promise me that both of you will try to understand each other."

"I'll…try." Ruri said softly.

"That's all I'm asking." Yuto said as he began drawing a card, before turning back to Ruri. "And just so we're clear, I've never once thought of you as helpless."

Ruri smiled softly.

"Ore no turn, DRAW!" Yuto exclaimed, when all of a sudden, his remaining Shadow Veil exploded.

"Umm…..what?" Yuto asked, confused by his monster's sudden self-destruction.

"While you two were busy flirting, I grabbed an Action Card." Shun explained. "The card was Single Destruction, and since you only controlled one monster, I used it to destroy the remaining Shadow Veil."

Yuto chuckled nervously. "How much of that did you hear?"

"I heard enough." Shun answered softly, making it hard to tell if he was angry or not.

"Hehe….I am so dead when this is over." Yuto muttered fearfully.

" _Got that right."_ Dark Rebellion snarked from afar.

Turning the card he drew over, Yuto smiled.

"I set Scale One The Phantom Knights of Forgotten Arms in the Pendulum Scale!"

To the left of Yuto and Ruri's field, another column of blue light appeared before a robbed Phantom Knight rose into the air, body decorated with a series of rusted armor plates, fractured swords, snapped spears, and cracked hammers. On his back was a quiver filled with bent and out-of-shape arrows.

 **The Phantom Knights of Forgotten Armor: Scale 1**

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Chalcedony Cardinal: Scale 12**

"In response," Shun bellowed, snatching a nearby Action Card, "Encore! I copy the effect of Crush Action in my Graveyard!"

"Yuto has reset his and Ruri's Pendulum Scales!" Dennis exclaimed, "but at the same time, Kurosaki has once again sealed off the Action Cards!"

"He does know that we're the only ones watching this duel, right?" Anna asked, perturbed by Dennis' jubilant attitude.

"You kinda have to get used to it!" Allen called out to his sister.

Yuto smiled, not upset by Shun's move in the slightest. "When Forgotten Arms is activated, I can add a Phantom Knights monster from my deck to my hand. I add The Phantom Knights of Rusted Mail to my hand."

"And then, with the already set Pendulum Scale, I Pendulum Summon!" Yuto declared, raising his hand in the air as a blackish-blue crystal pendulum appeared before swinging back and forth in the sky.

"Swing! Pendulum of Heroes! Be guided by the arc of light and gather on this war-torn battlefield here and now! Pendulum Shoukan! Appear, The Phantom Knights of Rusted Mail!"

Above Yuto's head, a pink portal opened up before a stream of blue light shot out and landed on the ground, dispersing to reveal an empty suit of rusted mail. Underneath the armor was a skull-faced ghost with a missing eye, as well as skeletal arms and legs.

 **The Phantom Knights of Rusted Mail:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 2500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Warrior/ Effect**

"And now Yuto has Pendulum Summoned!" Dennis exclaimed, much to the growing annoyance of the Heartland natives who were not that familiar with him.

"How much longer does he plan to do this?" Michael asked with a raised brow.

"He better hurry it up, or else I am getting my cannon." Anna growled.

"Rusted Mail no monster kouka!" Yuto declared, "When this card is Special Summoned, I can Special Summon one Phantom Knights monster from my Graveyard. Revive, The Phantom Knights of Tattered Banner!"

A black portal opened up beside Rusted Mail before Yuto's banner carrying knight rose out of it.

 **The Phantom Knights of Tattered Banner:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 800 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 6/ Warrior/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Yuto has two Level Fours…." Allen murmured. "So you know what monster's coming next."

"Here comes his dragon." Rio whispered as Yuto's monsters morphed into streams of light that drained into a spiraling galaxy.

"Formed from pitch-black darkness, to fight those foolish enough to oppose it with its treacherous fangs! Descend now! Xyz Shoukan! Appear, Rank Four! Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon!"

Rising from the portal with sharpened fangs, Dark Rebellion threw its head back before letting out a fierce roar, lightning sparking between the mechanical parts of the dragon's wings.

 **Dark Rebellion Xyz Dragon:** _ **2500 ATK**_ **/ 2000 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 4/ OVU: 2/ Dragon/ Xyz/ Effect**

Dark Rebellion gave a soft smile, happy to be by his master's side once more. Tuning out Dennis' commentary, he eyed the ground beside him, where the spirit of Assembly Nightingale appeared only to his eye.

" _What?"_ she twittered softly.

" _Falcon two, Nightingale zero."_ Dark Rebellion chuckled, much to the bird girl's annoyance.

" _Why must you and your brothers insist on trying to get under myself and my sisters' skin every time the opportunity to do so falls before your claws?"_ Nightingale chirped in irritation.

" _You girls make it so easy. It's the one thing my brothers and I can agree on."_ Dark Rebellion replied, before remembering something. _"Well, sans Odd-Eyes."_

Nightingale sighed. _"Yes, your youngest brother. You are a close family, yet you disagree on many things, your opinions on humans being the most frequently debated topic."_

Dark Rebellion sighed. Amongst Duel Spirits, humans had been a topic of mass controversy after the ancient Egyptian race of humans introduced the two species together. Between the four dragons that had ravaged the original world, none of them had ever reached a solid agreement. The youngest, Odd-Eyes, had always been fascinated by them, and believed that while they were indeed capable of committing horrible acts, that did not make them wicked automatically.

By contrast, Starve Venom, who was the eldest, had viewed them as nothing but selfish, self-serving bastards who didn't care who or what they stepped on to get their way. There was a time when he was more neutral on his beliefs, but that changed roughly a century ago when he permanently evolved into his current form. After that, he had held a rough and negative view of humans ever since, Zarc and his reincarnations being the only true exceptions to this rule.

Both Clear Wing and Dark Rebellion himself, however, where rather neutral on their views. They had seen humans do terrible, atrocious things, not just to Duel Spirits, but to their own kind as well. Yet at the same time, they did concede that Odd-Eyes had a point, in that these things were not a reflection on humanity as a whole. Even after they had grown close to Zarc after meeting him all those decades ago, the four still could not reach a unanimous opinion.

" _Of course, that changed after Ray's father combined the Real Solid Vision technology with Dueling, resulting in the cycle of pain that we are forced to endure."_ Dark Rebellion thought aloud, recalling the events that shifted the balance of not just his own life, but the lives of everyone at the time. _"Mine and Clear Wing's indifference towards humans grew into hatred, while Starve Venom's own hatred intensified. We grew angrier, until Zarc released us. We destroyed everything in our path, until we became one. We would have slaughtered all of humanity, had it not been for your master stopping us._

" _Yet,"_ Dark Rebellion paused, " _Even while we took our revenge, Odd-Eyes was still hesitant to take action. After the world was split once again, he has been trying tirelessly to convince us to let go of years of hatred."_

" _And did it work?"_ Nightingale asked.

" _For a time, yes."_ Dark Rebellion replied. _"Under the care of his master, decades' worth of hatred slowly started to melt. Starve Venom only began to change recently, but we were finally starting to see Odd-Eyes' side of things. But when time froze and the Dark Dimension attacked, when we heard the cries of those monsters as they were used in those wretched Synchro and Fusion imitations, that hatred reared its head once more."_

Nightingale nodded solemnly. " _Whoever these people are, we cannot stay divided. If they truly are a new enemy, than unity on all sides; human and Duel Spirit, must stay together. That includes you and your brothers."_

"WOULD YOU QUIT IT WITH THE COMMENTARY ALREADY!?"

All eyes turned towards Anna, who had just screamed at Dennis while he continued to commentate on the duel while the two monsters had been conversing. The entertainment duelist slunk behind Allen and quivered in fear of the girl's wrath.

"Congratulations Allen," Dennis cowered, "Your sister is the one person I find scarier than Kurosaki."

"That's nothing." Allen said, pushing Dennis' hand off his shoulder. "You should see Rio when she's angry. Nothing compares to that."

Rio, who had heard that remark, promptly gave Allen a quick glance, causing both him and Dennis to hide behind Sayaka.

"You two are vicious." Michael remarked, eyeing both girls.

"Moving on," Sayaka said, gently moving away from her friends, "Yuto has now summoned his Ace monster. But what will he do now?"

"Since Rusted Mail was used as Xyz Material for the summon of a DARK monster," Yuto continued, "Its other effect activates! I set one Phantom Knights Spell or Trap directly from my deck."

Watching a card appear briefly in his Spell and Trap zone, Yuto took the last card in his hand and smiled. "I activate Rank-Up-Magic The Phantom Knights' Launch! Using this card and Dark Rebellion as Material, I Xyz Summon a monster that is one Rank higher!"

"EH!" Anna exclaimed, "Yuto's Ranking-Up Dark Rebellion!?"

" _Behold humans,"_ Dark Rebellion smirked, _"My Evolution!"_ He boasted, before a pillar of shadow erupted from under his feet. Becoming encased in a cocoon of stained glass, Dark Rebellion felt the power of Yuto's Rank-Up spell coursing through his veins as he transformed. Flexing his sharpened claws before reaching the peak of his evolution, Dark Rebellion threw his head back and roared loudly while Yuto finished his summon chant.

"From the depths of purgatory, dedicate your song of rebellion to the restless souls! Appear and let it echo forevermore! Rank-Up Xyz Change! Ideyo, Rank Five! Dark Requiem Xyz Dragon!"

Discarding its glass cocoon, Yuto's new monster, a dragon similar to Dark Rebellion but with larger wings and bone-like plates of armor covering its body, emerged from within the pillar before roaring proudly, eyes glowing with yellow light.

 **Dark Requiem Xyz Dragon:** _ **3000 ATK**_ **/ 2500 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 5/ OVU: 3/ Dragon/ Xyz/ Effect**

All eyes, duelist and spectator alike, widened at the sight of the evolved dragon, unable to do anything other than stare. Chuckling softly, Yuto rubbed the back of his head, having not anticipated the silence that would occur.

Rio spoke first. "Well, _that's_ new."

"Yuto," Michael called out. "When did you acquire that dragon? Was it when you were brought back?"

"Actually no." Yuto answered back. "I got it when I dueled Edo Phoenix."

"And when," Shun asked, puzzled, "Did that happen?"

"When I was inside of Yuya." Answered Yuto, who widened his eyes in realization. "Okay, out of context, that sounds wrong. Point is, they dueled, and I possessed Yuya, and took over."

"Since when could you guys possess Yuya!?" Allen cried out from above. "Could you do that at will or something!?"

"I'm not exactly keen on the details…." Yuto muttered. "Look at this point I've just come to except the fact that weird stuff happens to me. No point trying to deny that the inexplicable can and will inevitably happen."

"Doesn't really answer my question, but okay." Allen grumbled.

"I activate the card I set with Rusted Mail's effect!" Yuto exclaimed, "The Phantom Knights of Blighted Arrow! This card destroys one monster on the field, then, I can activate a Trap from my Graveyard!"

Ruri stared at Yuto with a confused expression. "Yuto doesn't have any Traps in our Graveyard. And even then, he cannot destroy Ultimate Falcon."

"Dark Requiem no kouka!" Yuto shouted, enacting his true strategy. "By detaching an Overlay Unit, I special summon an Xyz Monster from my Graveyard and negate Blighted Arrow!"

Shun gasped as one of Dark Requiem's Overlay Units disintegrated in front of the dragon, before a black portal opened up. With a powerful flap of her wings, Ruri's Aspiring Nightingale rose up from within the portal, flashing a smile at her master, who grateful returned with one of her own.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 2/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

Turning towards Dark Requiem, the evolved nightingale gave a brief laugh. _"That is a good look for you, Dark Rebellion."_

Dark Requiem smirked proudly. _"Only fitting for a powerful dragon such as myself."_

Narrowing his eyes, Shun questioned why Yuto would go through all the trouble to bring back Aspiring Nightingale. _"Nice gesture aside, even if Yuto reattached Assembly Nightingale and attacks directly with it, he won't inflict much damage. Unless…."_ His eyes widened, realizing Yuto's true motive.

Smiling, Yuto raised his arm to the sky. "I activate Ruri's set Bird Strike!" he cried as the other card Ruri had set before flipped face-up, the crest on the back of Aspiring Nightingale beginning to glow. "Since I control a Lyrical Luscinia monster, the effects of all my opponent's monsters are negated!"

 **Raid Raptors – Force Strix X3: 100 ATK**

"SUGOI!" Dennis yelled as Shun's three Force Strix became enveloped by the light of Aspiring Nightingale's crest. "Yuto has not only brought back his girlfriend's Ace Monster, but severely weakened Kurosaki's army!"

"Moreover," Sayaka added, "with Aspiring Nightingale back on their field, Ruri and Yuto can now use Ruri's Bird Chorus again!"

"Shun's in for some big damage now!" Allen exclaimed, full of energy.

Rio sighed. "Classic Yuto. His deck may primarily be defensive, but he has an equally potent offense to go with it."

"He truly is a knight." Michael added, before noticing that Anna was looking at him, and she looked deep in thought. "What's wrong?"

"You sure the two of you aren't related?" The red-haired girl asked, "Because your fashion sense goes nicely with Yuto's Knight Complex."

"….I don't know what to say."

"Aspiring Nightingale's effect!" Yuto continued, "I target Assembly Nightingale and Recite Starling in my grave and attach them to Aspiring Nightingale as Overlay Units. Moreover, I activate Aspiring Nightingale's other effect, targeting the attached Assembly Nightingale before giving Aspiring Nightingale her effects for the turn."

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale: 200 ATK/ 2 OVU**

"Battle! Aspiring Nightingale attacks directly twice!" Yuto exclaimed as Aspiring Nightingale soared above Shun's field. "Ekay, Silent Lyric!"

With a flap of her wings, Aspiring Nightingale sent forth a gust of wind that battered Shun, forcing him to take a step back.

 **Shun: 8000 – 200 – 200 = 7600 LP**

"Keep up the assault, Dark Requiem!" Yuto exclaimed as stained-glass patterned membranes formed between his dragon's wings. "Attack one of Shun's Force Strix! Requiem Disaster Disobey!"

Chin spike glowing with energy, Dark Requiem rocketed forward into a weakened Force Strix, impaling the mechanical bird before destroying it in a grandiose explosion.

 **Shun: 7600 – 2900 = 4700 LP**

"Blighted Arrow's Graveyard effect!" Yuto yelled as a bow made of rotted and sickly wood appeared. "By banishing it, you take eight hundred damage! Go, Blighted Arrow!"

Shun dashed from platform to platform, trying to avoid the damage as the bow released a spectral arrow that whistled through the air before hitting him in the shoulder. Yuto winced, almost afraid of having accidently injured his best friend. The Solid Vision was turned down, but that didn't mean effects like the one he had just used wouldn't hurt.

 **Shun: 4700 – 800 = 3900 LP**

" _Deja-vuish."_ Dark Requiem remarked silently.

"You uh, you okay Shun?" Yuto called out nervously, afraid of what his answer would have been.

"I'm fine." Shun grunted as the arrow vanished. "That's nothing compared to the pain I felt when I lost you both."

Yuto gave a sigh, half-relieved and half dismayed by Shun's answer. _"Looks like he's not gonna give up anytime soon."_

"I end my turn, and now the effects Aspiring Nightingale gained are lost."

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale: 0 ATK**

"In just one turn, Yuto has managed to erase half of Kurosaki's Life Points." Dennis commented, wiping the sweat off his brow. "How will he respond?"

….

"I can't believe he's asking that." Necrograph Magician sighed, having been watching the duel in secret from high atop a nearby building. "It doesn't take a genius to know this is when he draws a card that turns the situation around in his favor."

Necrograph had seen this trope play out so many times since the game of Duel Monsters was created that he had lost count. Even when it was just a magical battle between spirits summoned by humans, there was always an ex-machina to pull the losing side to victory.

"Wow, I'm starting to sound like Chronograph." The magician chuckled, gazing down at Yuto and Ruri's side of the field. He had to admit, he was moderately impressed by the Xyz Dragon's evolution. A step in the right direction to eventually obtaining his ultimate power. Nightingale on the other hand…

"All this time, and all my sister's servant could achieve is a slightly more powerful evolution?" He sighed, disappointed by the lack of prowess the harpy-like monster exhibited. "Her Fusion and Synchro sisters have achieved their Penultimate forms, and are near the apex of their true power. You disappoint me, Nightingale, especially since you have the most potential out of your sisters. My own sister could have chosen better when picking her underlings."

"Watch it. That's my daughter you are talking about." A regal sounding male voice intoned. "To insult one of my children is to insult my whole kind."

Necrograph turned his head, amused by the warning made by the voice. "Oh perish the thought Kajandor. I'm only saying that if she wishes to achieve the power her sisters have reached, she has a lot of catching up to do."

Necrograph eyed the source of the voice with an amused look on his face. Standing before him was a tall, regal looking man with lightly tanned skin, solid sapphire blue eyes staring back at him, vermilion and gold eagle wings on his back, elegant robes woven from the feathers of dozens of different bird species, an ornate cape made up of colorful peacock feathers, an elegant golden headdress adorned with white feathers resting atop his crimson hair, and powerful condor talons for feet. Power radiated from the man's body, matched only by the intensity of his hawk-like gaze.

"Nice looking human form you've made for yourself Kajandor," Necrograph complimented as the man stepped forward. "It fits you, Father of Birds. So, what brings you here? I thought you were back in the Spirit World."

"I'm afraid that is why I'm here." Kajandor replied with a frown. "The Behemoth has sided with The Leviathan, and sides against humanity."

Necrograph scoffed. "I'm not surprised. Flashfin lacks the brute strength to back-up his cunning mind. No surprise he'd convince that muscle-brained Rhigorphan to join him."

"You promised Sacriel and myself that you would try to keep this from happening!" Kajandor growled, talons scrapping against the roof. "You said you'd keep things from getting any worse!"

Necrograph chuckled. "Whoops. What do you want me to say, I'm a busy guy. My primary task is to maintain the balance between Life and Death. I have to constantly end life so that new life can begin. You know I'm not entitled to pick sides in any sort of conflict, I just do when the balance between Order and Chaos is threatened….or when I'm bored. Odds are fifty-fifty either way."

Kajandor snarled, already growing tired with Necrograph's nonchalant attitude.

"But," Necrograph breathed, sounding bored of the conversation, "If you are looking to point talons, may I suggest the children of the Firstborn. After all, it was those lizards who decided to strike back at humans, and because of them, Spirits like Flashfin and Gaia decided to turn a bubbling controversy into a volcano waiting to explode. If we want to keep things from going that far, we all have our part to play. Right now, I have to be the one observing the progress of humans, see if war really is the best option."

"Are you sure this will work?" Kajandor asked skeptically. "It sounds like all you are doing is trying to buy time."

"Time is what we need." Necrograph grunted, gaze traveling back to the duel. "Cronus' plan is the straw that will break the camel's back as humans say. Doesn't matter the reasons he's doing it, once he goes through with it, that will be all Flashfin needs to convince the others to destroy humanity. You and Sacriel have to make sure he doesn't do anything rash. In the meantime, I'll continue to watch the incarnations and their allies, make sure they are ready to stop Chronograph's partner and, if need be, fight against the most powerful Duel Spirits in the world."

…

"Ore no turn!" Shun breatherd "Draw!"

" _He's not giving up anytime soon…"_ Yuto thought to himself, "He's always been stubborn so I shouldn't have expected anything else."

"From my hand, I activate Rank-Up-Magic Skip Force!" Shun declared, throwing down the card he had drawn. "I target an Xyz Monster I control and summon a Raid Raptors Xyz Monster that is two Ranks higher!"

"Not so fast!" Yuto countered, activating his and Ruri's face-down card. "I banish a Sapphire Swallow from our Graveyard to negate Skip Force and destroy it!"

Shun's Rank-Up card had just began to glow when a swarm of birds launched from Ruri's trap and destroyed it with their sharp beaks.

"I banish a Turquoise Warbler from our graveyard to reset our Bird Chorus." Yuto continued before smiling. "You're out of cards Shun. Might as well give up now."

At this point, Shun began laughing, at first merely chuckling before erupting into the kind of laughter that Yuya would give, much to everyone's confusion.

"I'm sorry Yuto, truly I am." Shun snorted "I'm just surprised you think I wouldn't plan ahead!" Shun declared, stretching out his arm. "Trap hasudo! Rank-Over! I target a Rank-Up-Magic in my Graveyard and either add it to my hand or activate it! I target Skip Force before activating its effects!"

"Kurosaki effortlessly defies Yuto's attempted counter!" Dennis screamed, leaping onto the table, surprising Allen and Sayaka.

"He's getting too into this." Allen sweat dropped, Sayaka nodding in agreement.

Yuto grimaced, furious that Shun had seen past his trick. He could only watch as one of the remaining Force Strix turned into a stream of energy, rocketing into another Xyz portal as Shun chanted.

"Proud falcon! Spread your wings dyed in the blood of heroes and advance through the path of revolution! Rank-Up Xyz Change! Appear now, Rank Six! Raid Raptors – Revolution Falcon!"

With a proud and majestic screech, Shun's powerful armored falcon flew out of the portal, thrusters firing at full cylinder as Revolution Falcon flapped its metallic wings.

 **Raid Raptors – Revolution Falcon:** _ **2000 ATK**_ **/ 3000 DEF/ DARK/ Rank 6/ OVU: 2/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"Dark Requiem can negate Revolution Falcon's destruction effect." Shun said. "So I choose not to activate that effect. However," he added as one of Revolution Falcon's Overlay Units disappeared. "I do activate Revolution Falcon's other effect."

"Now Revolution Falcon can attack all our monsters," Ruri whispered, "and with its other effect…."

"Battle!" Shun cried, hopping on the back of his monster! "Revolution Falcon, attack Dark Requiem Xyz Dragon! At this moment, Revolution Falcon's effect activates! Since it is battling a Special Summoned monster, that monster's ATK becomes zero! Ekay, Revolution Falcon! Revolutional Air Raid"

 **Dark Requiem Xyz Dragon: 3000 – 0 ATK**

Thrusters flaring to life, Revolution Falcon flew high above the field as Dark Requiem staggered backwards. Opening the compartments on its wings, the mechanical falcon unleashed a payload of explosives onto the field, which plummeted down at high speed.

" _This is gonna hurt."_ Dark Requiem sighed before the bombs began to explode, engulfing him in a powerful inferno. _"OH I WAS RIGHT!"_ The dragon shrieked as his master was knocked back by the force of the explosion.

 **Yuto: 4000 – 2000 = 2000 LP**

"Kurosaki returns the favor by wiping out half of Yuto's Life Points ON TOP of destroying his dragon!" Dennis screamed, before losing his balance and falling off the table. "What will Yuto or Ruri do now?"

"Since a Dark Xyz Monster was destroyed," Yuto grunted, "the Pendulum Effect of Forgotten Arms activates! I Special Summon Tattered Banner from my Graveyard in defense position." He explained as the banner waving knight resurrected from the grave.

 **The Phantom Knights of Tattered Banner: 0 ATK/** _ **800 DEF**_ **/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 6/ Warrior/ Pendulum/ Effect**

"Pointless!" Shun called out, "Revolution Falcon, destroy Tattered Banner!"

With a loud shriek, the mechanical falcon dive bombed into Yuto's freshly summoned monster, crushing it in his beak.

"I'm far from done!" Shun continued, leaping off a platform as he grabbed an Action Card. "Force Strix, attack Aspiring Nightingale. And at the same time, I activate Victory Topping, giving my monster six hundred ATK!"

 **Raid Raptor – Force Strix: 100 + 600 = 700 ATK**

"Aspiring Nightingale's effect!" Yuto countered fiercely, determined to protect Ruri's monster. "I target Assembly Nightingale in order to copy her effects, and then I detach the Recite Starling attached to her in order to negate Aspiring Nightingale's destruction and reduce the battle damage to zero!"

One of the Overlay units circling around Aspiring Nightingale broke free of its orbit before colliding with the attacking Force Strix, halting the bird in its tracks.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale: 100 ATK**

"Yuto's protected Aspiring Nightingale," Michael analyzed. "But since Assembly Nightingale is the only monster attached to it…."

"If Yuto were to activate the effect gained from Assembly Nightingale," Rio continued the train of thought, "he'd lose the effects since Aspiring Nightingale no longer has Assembly Nightingale as material."

….

"Three, two, one!" Necrograph counted down dramatically.

….

Shun snatched a nearby Action Card, and took only a split second to look at what it was before throwing it down.

"Action Magic, Overlay Penalty! All Xyz Monsters on the field forcibly lose one overlay unit!"

 **Raid Raptors – Ultimate Falcon: 0 OVU**

 **Raid Raptors – Revolution Falcon: 0 OVU**

 **Raid Raptors – Force Strix: 1 OVU – 0 OVU**

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale: 1 OVU – 0 OVU/ No longer gaining the effects of Assembly Nightingale**

….

"Called it!" Necrograph smugly grinned, further irritating his companion.

"Must not make a scene…must not make a scene." Kajandor whispered begrudgingly.

…

"And there goes his protection." Allen said dryly. "Once Aspiring Nightingale is destroyed and Yuto loses, Ruri won't be able to recover next turn and Shun wins."

"Ultimate Falcon, destroy Aspiring Nightingale!" Shun ordered, his monster preparing to attack.

"Will history repeat itself?" Dennis asked dramatically. "Will the nightingale be crushed once again by the falcon's talons!?"

"WE'LL FIND OUT REGARDLESS OF THE COMMENTARY!" Anna screamed, reaching a boiling point with Dennis and his entertainer routine.

Shun smiled, confident with his impending victory, when he noticed his sister looking down from a platform in the corner of his eye. There was an Action Card nearby, and Ruri was aiming to grab it.

"That won't save you!" Shun cried, beginning to leap to the platform. Fingers extended, he was about to grab the card when….

Ruri leaped down from her platform, gracefully diving from high above before snagging the card mere seconds before her brother could.

Landing carefully on another platform, Ruri wasted no time as she threw down the card. "Action Magic, Spiritual Aura! By halving the Life Points of one player, I make it so that player takes no further damage this turn!"

"Action Magic," Yuto declared, having found an Action Card himself. "Muteki! Aspiring Nightingale cannot be destroyed by battle or card effects this turn!"

Both Yuto and Aspiring Nightingale became enveloped in auras, with the one enveloping Yuto causing him to take deep, heavy breaths, while Aspiring Nightingale was surrounded by a golden aura that repelled Ultimate Falcon's attack as if it was just a fly.

 **Yuto: 2000/2 = 1000 LP**

"Through their teamwork, Ruri and Yuto have managed to hold off against Shun's attacks." Sayaka announced, Dennis too afraid of further angering Anna to continue.

"I retract my previous statement…." Allen begrudgingly said, having expected Shun to basically win right then and there.

"Thanks for the save." Yuto thanked Ruri, getting back on his feet.

"I'm just returning the favor." Ruri replied with a soft smile, before returning her attention to the duel and staring at her brother.

"Turn End."

"Atashi no turn, Draw!" Ruri exclaimed with determination.

Taking a look at the card she had drawn, Ruri sighed. "Yuto," she spoke softly, "I have a plan that, if all go rights, will help you win. But, for it to work, you cannot help me at all this turn."

"Help _me_ win?" A puzzled Yuto repeated, questioning Ruri's choice of words. "Ruri what do you mea-"

"Promise me." She repeated firmly, causing Yuto to step down and nod 'yes.'

"Thank you." Ruri said before taking her turn. "During my Standby Phase, the effect of Lyrical Force activates. I banish Aquamarine Martin from my Graveyard in order to add Lyrical Force back to my hand."

"Ruri's got her Rank-Up card back, and she still has Aspiring Nightingale." Rio summarized, "She has a fighting chance, but will it be enough to take down her brother?"

"Aspiring Nightingale no kouka! I attach Recite Starling and Assembly Nightingale to her as Overlay Units!" Ruri decreed, the double "L" crest on her monster glowing with light as two orbs of energy exited the Graveyard and surrounded her.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale: 2 OVU**

"And then, I use Aspiring Nightingale's effect to target," Ruri paused, "Recite Starling. Aspiring Nightingale gains Recite Starling's effects for the turn."

Anna tilted her head to the side, puzzled by Ruri's decision. "Why would she pick Recite Starling?"

"Most likely, she need to be able to search another monster." Michael remarked, "What is she up to?"

"I detach Assembly Nightingale from Aspiring Nightingale in order to activate the effect gained from Recite Starling." Ruri calmly stated as the card of her choice popped out of her deck.

Adding the card to her hand, Ruri took a moment to gaze at the card. This card was different from the other ones that made up her deck. It was given to her by someone she used to know, someone she wished she could be more like; strong and able to fight by herself, yet never willing to leave the people she cared about unprotected and in harm's way. The card was a symbol of her and her strength, something Ruri wished she had recieved from her.

"With the already set, Pendulum Scale," Ruri whispered, before her voice exploded with power, "I Pendulum Summon! Fly down, the shining songbird that flies in the heavens! En Angel – Tori!"

A portal opened up, and from it, a yellow ball of light exited before circling the field, slowly transforming. Moments later, the light had faded to reveal a bird girl that resembled Ruri, with crystal white hair secured by a wing-shaped barrette, lilac side tails, yellow irises, and tiny bird claws for feet. Her outfit was a simple black dress with a yellow feather skirt, and black and pale yellow feathered sleeves. Extending from her back were her wings, decorated with a yellow bird design. Hanging from her neck was a silver necklace with a yellow epsilon-shaped gem, and coiling up her right arm was a yellow ribbon with feather embroidery. Gracefully fluttering her wings, the angelic harpy descended from the sky until she stood parallel to Ruri.

 **En Angel – Tori:** _ **800 ATK**_ **/ 1700 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"Woah…." Yuto whispered, in awe of Ruri's monster. The spectators gazed upon Tori with similar looks of wonder, even Shun couldn't help feel somewhat entranced.

….

"Utsukushi…" Kajandor whispered.

Necrograph merely shrugged. "I suppose I should have expected her to have one of Ray's monsters as well. However, Tori's effects won't help the Xyz reincarnation unless she would Xyz Summon. So what is she planning?"

…..

"Now I Normal Summon the Turquoise Warbler I added to my hand last turn."

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Turquoise Warbler:** _ **100 ATK**_ **/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Winged Beast/ Effect**

"And now, Rank-Up-Magic Lyrical Force hasudo!"

"Lyrical Force again?" Yuto questioned as an Xyz Portal opened up before Aspiring Nightingale flew into the center, Ruri's chant accompanying her monster's evolution.

"Birds of every kind, lend your power to one another and stand by each other as a growing power! Rank-Up Xyz Change! Let your heart take flight! Rank Three! Lyrical Luscinia – Allied Nightingale!"

In a swirling breeze of glowing feathers, a stronger bird woman descended from the spiraling portal. Gliding down on her feathery, dagger-tipped wings and a larger double "L" crest than that of her previous form, Allied Nightingale gazed upon the field. Clad in a suit of elegant yet lightweight suit of light-blue armor, chest plate adorned by several dozen glittering blue stones, the bird woman emitted a sense of grace and dignity, magnified by the both the winged bird helmet atop her head and the harmonized choir of birds that heralded her descent.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Allied Nightingale:** _ **0 + (100 X 2) = 200 ATK**_ **/ 0 + (100 X 2) = 200 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 3/ OVU: 2/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"Allied Nightingale no kouka!" Ruri exclaimed, gesturing to her monster. "Once per turn, I can target a Lyrical Luscinia monster attached to her as an Overlay Unit and have Allied Nightingale gain that monsters effects this turn. I target Aspiring Nightingale."

"Oh, so that's what you mean earlier." Dennis remarked, having realized the meaning behind Allen's earlier comment. "Ruri's Xyz monsters copy the effects of the monsters attached to themselves as material."

"Bingo." Allen said, "Once Ruri starts ranking-up her monsters and has Aspiring Nightingale attached to them, she can just start regaining overlay units for the price of nothing."

"Since Allied Nightingale is Rank Three, I attach Assembly Nightingale, Lapis Lazuli Lark and a Tourmaline Thrush to her as Overlay Units!" Ruri exclaimed as Allied Nightingale summoned the spirits of the chosen monsters before they transformed into spheres of light that began orbiting her monster.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Allied Nightingale: 5 OVU**

"Allied Nightingale's own effect! Once per turn, I can increase my Life Points by one hundred for each of her Overlay Units! Since she has five, I regain five hundred Life Points!"

The crest on the back of Allied Nightingale began shining as Ruri became enveloped by a healing glow. Sighing pleasantly as she felt her strength slowly coming back to her, Ruri look at her brother with renewed determination shining in her eyes.

 **Ruri: 500 + 500 = 1000 LP**

"Next," Ruri continued, gingerly placing the card she had drawn for her turn onto her duel disk. "I activate Rank-Up-Magic Luscinia Force! I target Allied Nightingale and use her to Xyz Summon a Lyrical Luscinia monster up to two Ranks higher!"

Vanishing as quickly as she appeared, Allied Nightingale ascended into a freshly summoned Xyz Portal as Ruri chanted, voice strengthening with each word.

"Birds with wills aligned into a single flock, sing the song of freedom and fight as one! Rank-Up Xyz Change! Fly as one! Rank Four! Lyrical Luscinia – United Nightingale!"

A bird girl resembling Allied Nightingale flew down from the heavens, surrounded by emerald green spheres of light that orbited around her in perfect synch. Her body was clad in the same armor as Allied Nightingale, but now painted with patterns of black, white and blue, while the crest on her back had once again grown larger, the lower part of the double "L" now shaped like bird wings.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – United Nightingale:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 5/ OVU: 6/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"United Nightingale no kouka!" She proclaimed, holding her hand up high. "I copy the effects of Aspiring Nightingale and attach a Turquoise Warbler, Cobalt Sparrow and two Tourmaline Thrushes to United Nightingale as Overlay Units!" she commanded as another quartet of glowing spheres rose from her Graveyard and joined the ones already orbiting her United Nightingale.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – United Nightingale: 10 OVU**

Shun narrowed his eyes as he attempted to puzzle out his sister's plan.

"Consecutive swarming," Michael whispered. "And now she's going for consecutive Rank-Ups. Despite their attitudes, Ruri and Shun truly do have similar tactics."

"Now," Ruri continued, "I tribute Turquoise Warbler in order to activate Luscinia Force's other effect! I set Luscinia Force from Graveyard to my field!" The yellow wearing bird girl vanished, Ruri's Rank-Up card appearing face down behind the zone she previously occupied. "And now, I reactivate Luscinia Force!" she exclaimed, her United Nightingale basking in the card's activation light before flying into yet another Xyz Portal.

"United Flock of birds," Ruri chanted, "throw off the shackles of your mind and heart and make the limitless skies your destiny! Rank-Up Xyz Change! Dominate the heavens! Rank Five! Lyrical Luscinia – Emancipated Nightingale!"

Duelist and spectator alike shielded their eyes as a bright light enveloped the field from within the portal, banishing the nearby clouds. Deep ebony skin, contrasting with the blinding radiance, peaked out from underneath the armor she wore, now covering less skin and featuring the addition of red patches. Her helmet had also become lighter, adorned by a plume of bird feathers at the top. The crest on her back had grown once more, a blue diamond amidst the center of the heart-shaped top, glowing with light.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Emancipated Nightingale:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 5/ OVU: 11/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

Shun calmly lowered his arm before staring back at Ruri.

"Are you finished with your tantrum, Ruri?"

Ruri closed her eyes before speaking. "Shun I have always loved you, you're my brother, regardless of how this whole thing works. I know you just want to protect me, but I am not a little girl anymore. You won't always be there to protect me, please understand that."

The whole world seemed to go silent, only watching the two siblings as Ruri spoke each of her words with a firm resolution and a compassionate thought backing them. "I want to grow stronger, not only because I want to be able to handle myself without you, but because….I don't want to be stuck in your shadow for the rest of my life. You have always been one of the most powerful duelists I know, and during the war with Academia you fought valiantly to protect our home. But I…." she paused, repressing an upcoming tear. "I couldn't do any of that. I was so dependent on relying on others to protect me that I failed to protect myself, and that cost me to be away from the people I love for so long….

"I don't want to be like that anymore!" Ruri wept, a stray tear trailing down her check as she thought of the pain her kidnapping had caused. "I want to be able to fight for my freedom, not let others do the fighting for me! I don't want to only be known as just your sister…"

"Ruri…" Shun whispered, overcome with a flood of guilt and self-doubt from Ruri's speech. Had he been too much? Had he always tried to keep his sister safe by caging her under his protection when she deserved to be able to fly?

The rest remained speechless, a newfound understanding of Ruri's feelings. Rio in particular sympathized the most, knowing what it was like to have an older brother that people were constantly comparing her to, so much that she felt stuck in his shadow.

"That's why," Ruri finished, wiping the tear from her face, "If I'm ever going to become my own person, I have to do this. Emancipated Nightingale no kouka! I target both the Aspiring Nightingale and Allied Nightingale attached to her in order to gain both their effects. And then, I use the inherited effect of Aspiring Nightingale to attach the final Turquoise Warbler in my Graveyard and the En Angel – Tori on my field to her as Overlay Units!"

Nodding their heads, Tori and the spirit of Turquoise Warbler transformed into two more orbs of light that flocked around Emancipated Nightingale, who was now hidden by the glow of her materials.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Emancipated Nightingale: 13 OVU**

"The effect of Allied Nightingale!"

 **Ruri LP: 1000 + 1300 = 2300**

"Finally, Emancipated Nightingale's own effect!" Ruri shouted, the gem on her bracelet glowing with light. "I add Rank-Up-Magic Lyrical Force from my Graveyard to my hand before activating it once more!"

A final galaxy portal opened up, shining brightly as Emancipated Nightingale transformed into a stream of light that rocketed into the center.

"Emancipated flock, with the power of your wings, set a course of your own choice and ascend to a bright destiny! Rank-Up Xyz Change!" Ruri roared as her new monster burst forth from a pillar of light, which slowly vanished. "Fly towards a glorious future! Rank Six! Lyrical Luscinia – Freedom Nightingale!"

Feathers swirling around her as she descended from the sky, Freedom Nightingale proudly stood, floating in the air. The tips of her powerful wings bore sharp, sword-like feathers, while the crest on her back had grown even larger than before, now as large as she was, the wing-shaped bottom part of the L's now being used as another set of wings. Her armor had become less revealing, with thin robes of blue and white over her skin, but otherwise she was identical to her previous form. The heavenly voices of a growing bird chorus sounded behind the monster, proclaiming her triumphant advent.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Freedom Nightingale:** _ **0 + (100 X 14) = 1400 ATK**_ **/ 0 + (100 X 14) = 1400 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 6/ OVU: 14/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

"Freedom….Nightingale?" Shun whispered as he gazed upon Ruri's monster in amazement. "This is..Ruri's feelings?"

…..

"Now _THAT_ is an evolution!" Necrograph cheered, thrilled by the newfound strength of his sister's servant.

"Must you be so obnoxious?" Kajandor bellowed, aiming to claw at Necrograph before the magician stepped away.

Necrograph chuckled. "Relax Kajandor, I'm only teasing. She took a bit longer than the rest, but now she's reached her true evolved form. You need to obtain a better sense of humor."

"This coming from a being that, by his own accord, has no emotions, and any signs of such is just performative mimicry?"

"Oh sure," Necrograph scoffed, " _that_ you listen to."

…..

" _This monster represents Ruri's feelings."_ Yuto whispered internally. _"Her desire to be able to stand on her own."_

Yuto frowned, understanding Ruri's wish for him to stay uninvolved this turn. She wanted to prove to everyone that she didn't need others to help her when push comes to shove, including him. It hurt to know that Ruri didn't want his help, in fact Yuto was starting to believe she didn't want him to have become involved in the duel to begin with, but it explained her actions. Why she seemed to disregard him in her first turn, why she was using more than her usual strategies, constant Rank-Ups were something her brother would do.

" _Ruri's always been reliant on the power of others. She's like the birds that make up her deck, alone she isn't much, but her true strength is the people who come together to support her. But after everything that happened, she views that strength as a weakness."_

"Freedom Nightingale's effect!" Ruri called as the crest on her monster lit up. "She inherits the effects of both Assembly Nightingale and Emancipated Nightingale!"

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Freedom Nightingale: 1400 + (100 X 14) = 2800 ATK**

"Freedom Nightingale's other effect!" Ruri declared loudly, her bracelet still emitting a faint light. "Thanks to the inherited effect of Emancipated Nightingale, I detach two Overlay Units in order to target Freedom Nightingale and make it so she is unaffected by my opponent's card effects this turn!"

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Freedom Nightingale: 2600 ATK/ OVU: 12/ Unaffected by the opponent's card effects**

"And finally, Freedom Nightingale's own effect! I detach another two Overlay Units to summon a Lyrical Luscinia monster from my hand, Deck, Graveyard or Extra Deck! Fly once again, Recite Starling!"

Appearing before Ruri, a black summoning circle shimmered into existence before Recite Starling reappeared to her field, scattering feathers with a flap of her wings.

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Recite Starling:** _ **0 ATK**_ **/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 1/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect**

 **Lyrical Luscinia – Freedom Nightingale: 2400 ATK/ OVU: 10**

"Why would she use up Freedom Nightingale's Overlay Units to summon Recite Starling?" Dennis asked calmly, mainly to prevent infuriating Allen's sister any further.

Ruri smirked. "Thanks to the effects of Assembly Nightingale, Freedom Nightingale can attack directly up to fourteen times! Freedom Nightingale, Attack!"

"I will not let you!" Shun declared, grabbing an Action Card. "Action Magic, Great Escape! The Battle Phase ends!"

"Bird Chorus activate!" Ruri countered as a flock of birds tore apart the Action Card. "Great Escape is negated!"

Shun scowled as Ruri's monster flew above his field, then downwards and smacked him with her wings.

 **Shun: 3900 – 2400 = 1500 LP**

"The second attack!" Ruri continued as her brother got up and leapt towards an Action Card.

Instinctively feeling Ruri's monster above him, Shun managed to grab the card and activate it as the wings of the bird woman slammed into hia stomach, knocking him off the platform and sending him downward. Survival skills kicking in, Shun angled himself in such a way that he was able to grab a platform mid-fall.

 **Shun: 1500 – (2400 / 2) = 300 LP**

Ruri made no reaction. She knew her brother would find a way to keep going, he always did.

"Action Magic!" Shun bellowed, having snagged another card during his fall. "Noble Sacrifice! By targeting Ultimate Falcon, I prevent you from targeting any other monsters for attacks or with card effects this turn!"

"Since the card doesn't actually affect Freedom Nightingale, her effect can't counter it." Anna breathed. "And Freedom Nightingale doesn't have enough ATK to defeat Ultimate Falcon."

"Now I've sealed off your only means of winning this duel." Shun declared, breathing heavily. The force behind Freedom Nightingale's attacks was powerful, even if he had found a way to halve the damage.

Ruri made no counter. Instead she looked her brother in the eyes and said, "I didn't expect to win."

"What?" Shun asked, stunned by his sister's declaration. "What do you mean?"

"I told Yuto that, if my plan goes well, then he'd be the winner of this duel." Laughing with melancholy, Ruri revealed the truth. "I expected you to survive Freedom Nightingale's attacks, so that's why I summoned a monster that would take both of us down."

"She isn't!" Allen abruptly screeched, Ruri's plan hitting him instantly.

"She is!" Sayaka sputtered, much to Dennis' confusion.

"What are doing Ruri-chan!?" The entertainment duelist cried.

"Recite Starling has three effects." Ruri answered, voice remaining even. "Her third effect will make it so that when I take any battle damage involving her, that damage will be inflicted to my opponent as well!"

"Mutual destruction…." Rio whispered, eyes wide with shock.

"Don't!" Shun protested as Ruri softened her gaze.

Ignoring her brother's protests, Ruri fiercely declared, "Recite Starling attacks Ultimate Falcon!"

At that moment, it felt as if the whole world had gone mute. Everyone watched as Recite Starling flew towards Ultimate Falcon, who began charging up another burst of dark energy as she approached. Smiling to herself, Ruri felt a tinge of both pride and sadness. Even if she had not overcome her brother, she had seen herself duel like she never had before. There was new found strength in each of her words, it gave her the courage to admit to her brother how she truly felt about being in his shadow.

Closing her eyes, Ruri accepted the inevitable as her monster crashed headfirst into Ultimate Falcon's counter attack, causing a massive explosion that swept both Kurosaki siblings off their feet and sent them flying.

"…and in the end, the winner is…" Dennis began, before looking at the LP values of both duelists and widened his eyes in shock.

 **Shun: 300 – (3500 / 2) = 0 LP**

 **Ruri: 2300 – (3500 / 2) = 550 LP**

 **Yuto and Ruri Win**

"How did-" Sayaka began, before remembering about Yuto. Searching the field, she and everyone else saw Yuto to the side, the card Miracle appearing next to him as the holograms slowly began disappearing.

"Sorry." Yuto said as he helped Ruri up, embarrassed by his refusal to let her plan go through. "Force of habit."

"I guess I forgot to take that into account." Ruri whispered, somewhat glad that Yuto cared about enough to not do something that reckless.

"Ruri." Turning around, she saw Shun standing before her, an uncomfortable look on his face. Averting his gaze, the three duelists felt an awkward silence begin to grow.

"Gee Ruri," Yuto said in an impression of Shun. "I'm sorry for being such a controlling dictator." He then switched over to an impression of Ruri. "No I'm sorry brother, for being a rebellious teenage girl."

"Butt out." The Kurosaki siblings quipped simultaneously, before they started laughing. Feeling that the two should have some privacy, Yuto stepped aside, knowing they can take things from here.

"He's right though." Shun said softly. "I am sorry. I shouldn't have expected you to come back just to-"

"No I'm sorry." Ruri interrupted. "I know you've been hurt by what happened. I just….I want to be more than what I am."

"I admit," Shun sighed, "I can be a bit much."

"A bit?" Ruri asked skeptically.

"Okay, I can be a lot." He admitted, causing his sister to chuckle. "I guess, we both wanted what was best for you, we just didn't find a way to both get what we wanted."

"Maybe we can try to find one." Ruri offered, holding out her hand. Smiling, Shun took his sisters hand before, much to his surprise, Ruri wrapped her arms around him and embraced him in a warm hug.

"I love you, nii-san." She whispered softly as he returned the hug.

"I love you two Ruri."

From the sidelines, Anna wiped a stray tear from her face. As trigger-happy as her temper was, even she found moments like this to be touching.

"Are you crying?" Rio smirked.

"What?" Anna sniffled, recomposing herself. "Even I think this is nice. Allen," she called, "come over here and give your sister a hug!"

"Umm," Allen trailed nervously as his sister began running towards him. "NO THANKS!" He screamed as his sister began chasing him, threatening to get her cannon if he didn't give her a hug.

"Well," Dennis chuckled, glad that he wasn't the target of Anna's aggression for once. "I guess all's well that ends well."

"I just hope she actually doesn't bring out the cannon." Sayaka groaned, before looking back at the two siblings. "Allen, just hug her!"

"NO!"

"Siblings, what are you gonna do? "Michael sighed, reminiscing about his older brothers.

"Tell me about it." Rio laughed, glad that her brother wasn't here to see this.

…..

"So, that convince you?" Necrograph asked smugly. "These incarnations and their allies are the best chance we have at preventing a massive conflict, but they still need time to grow and reach their full potential."

"As much as it pains me to admit you are right," Kajandor reluctantly answered, "I concede that you have a point. If this is going to happen, everyone must be at their best. But their evolution-"

"Cannot be rushed." Necrograph retorted. "Rome wasn't built in a day, as the humans so put it. These incarnations must be able to grow at their own rate."

"It took the Pendulum girl nearly three years to learn how to Pendulum Summon," Kajandor pointed out, "and she still has yet to learn Synchro."

"Fair point, however," the magician rebutted, "thanks to that gap, she was able to perfect her Fusion skills, and now she has mastered three summons. And that was because she was motivated to move at her own pace."

Kajandor was about to reply, when he noticed something down below. "I think she'd be motivated enough real soon," he said, gesturing to what he saw. Turning around, Necrograph saw a girl with long blonde hair, adorned with star and constellation clips, entering a dimensional gap which faded away the moment she stepped through."

Necrograph frowned. " _So,"_ he pondered internally, " _Chronograph's partner is making his move. Not good."_

"It would seem our time table is moving up a smidge." Kajandor grimaced, "Have anything to say to that?"

"She was obviously doing reconnaissance, observing how much her dimension's new enemies have grown." Necrograph replied, mind formulating what to do in this situation. "Until we know what the 'Dark' Dimension, as they've chosen to call themselves, are aiming to do next, we stick to our agreed upon arrangement. I just hope that no one picks up on that boy's potential for darkness."

"That boy," the Father of Birds questioned. Looking back down, he saw Yuto blush as Ruri pulled her lips away from his cheek. Though part of Zarc's power came from Astrograph Magician's own power, most of it was from the anger and corruption his soul bore during his rampage against the United World. Despite that, his reincarnations were beings of neutrality, purified by Ray's sacrifice and the flow of energy that was Pendulum Summoning.

"If he is anything like is past life," Kajandor began, cut off by an obnoxious sigh from his associate.

"Not him, bird brain. HIM!" He declared, pointing towards Shun, who was about to start a duel with Michael. "The girl's brother has got quite the darkness inside of him."

"Her brother?" A stunned Kajandor parroted. "But he is motivated to protect his sister."

"Who, as we have seen, wants to be free of his hold. I can already see the conflict bubbling up inside him," Necrograph calmly explained. "Without his sister to protect, what's left for him? Something that can be exploited by some of Cronus' elites."

Conjuring up a portal, Necrograph vanished through it as he left Kajandor a cryptic warning.

"The best people have been motivated to do the worst things for the sake of their loved ones."

* * *

Cards in this chapter

**Yuto's cards**

The Phantom Knights of Rusted Mail

0 ATK/ 2500 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ Warrior/ Effect

If this card is Special Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 "Phantom Knights" monster from your GY. If this card is used as Material for the Xyz Summon of a DARK Xyz Monster: You can set 1 "Phantom Knights" Spell/Trap Card from your Deck. During your opponent's Battle Phase, if you would take damage: You can banish this card from your GY instead.

The Phantom Knights of Tattered Banner

0 ATK/ 800 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 6/ Warrior/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ DARK monsters you control gain 500 ATK. Your "Phantom Knights" monsters cannot be destroyed by battle once per turn.

M/ "Phantom Knights" monsters you control gain 1000 ATK. During either player's Battle Phase (Quick Effect): You can send this card from your hand or field to the GY; send up to 3 "Phantom Knights" Spell/Trap Cards from your hand to your GY.

The Phantom Knights of Forgotten Arms

1800 ATK/ 1300 DEF/ DARK/ Level 4/ P.S. 1/ Warrior/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ When this card is activated: You can add 1 "The Phantom Knights" monster from your Deck, GY, or that is banished to your hand. You cannot Special Summon monsters the turn you activate this effect, except DARK Monsters. If a DARK Xyz Monster you control is destroyed and sent to the GY: You can target 1 "The Phantom Knights" monster in your GY whose Level is higher or lower than the destroyed monster's Rank by 1; Special Summon it. You can only use each Pendulum effect of "The Phantom knights of Forgotten Arms" once per turn.

M/ Once per turn: You can target 2 monsters you control; increase or decrease the Levels of those targets by 1. An Xyz Monster summoned using this card as material gains this effect:

If an attack is declared involving this card: This card gains 800 ATK or DEF (depending on this card's battle position.)

The Phantom Knights of Blighted Arrow

Normal Spell

Target 1 monster on the field: Destroy it; and if you do, you can activate 1 "The Phantom Knights" Trap Card from your GY. You can banish this card in your GY: Inflict 800 damage to your opponent.

** Ruri's cards**

En Angel – Tori

800 ATK/ 1700 DEF/ WIND/ Level 4/ Winged Beast/ Effect

(This card is always treated as a "Lyrical Luscinia" card).

If this card is Normal or Special Summoned: You can Special Summon up to 2 Level Four or lower "En" monsters from your Deck or GY. You cannot Special Summon monsters the turn you activate this effect, except "En" or Winged Beast monsters. You can declare a Level between 1 and 12: The Levels of all monsters you currently control become the declared Level, until the end of this turn. You can only use each effect of "En Angel – Tori" once per turn. An Xyz Monster that has this card attached as Material gains this effect:

Once per turn (Quick Effect): You can detach 1 Material from this card; you take no battle damage, until after the End Phase of the next turn.

Lyrical Luscinia – Tourmaline Thrush

100 ATK/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Winged Beast/ Effect

If this card is Special Summoned: You can add either 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" Spell/Trap Card OR 1 "Rank-Up" card from your Deck or GY to your hand. A "Lyrical Luscinia" Xyz Monster summoned using this card as Material gains this effect:

If this card is Xyz Summoned: You can attach 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster from your Deck to this card as Material.

Lyrical Luscinia – Aquamarine Martin

300 ATK/ 200 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ Winged Beast/ Effect

If this card is Special Summoned: You can send 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster from your Deck to your GY; and if you do, Special Summon 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster from your hand or Deck with the same name as the sent monster. A "Lyrical Luscinia" Xyz Monster summoned using this card as Material gains this effect:

If this card is Xyz Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster from your GY.

Lyrical Luscinia – Lapis Lazuli Lark

400 ATK/ 100 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ P.S. 0/ Winged Beast/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ If this card is activated: You can add 1 Level 1 monster from your Deck to your hand. If you control 2 or more "Lyrical Luscinia" monsters: You can Special Summon this card from your Pendulum Zone.

M/ If this card is Special Summoned: You can Special Summon 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster from your Deck or face-up in your Extra Deck, except "Lyrical Luscinia – Lapis Lazuli Lark." You can only use this effect of "Lyrical Luscinia – Lapis Lazuli Lark" one per turn.

Lyrical Luscinia – Chalcedony Cardinal

100 ATK/ 400 DEF/ WIND/ Level 1/ P.S. 2/ Winged Beast/ Pendulum/ Effect

P/ Each time you Special Summon a monster(s): You can increase or decrease this card's Pendulum Scale by 2 (max. 0) (min. 12). If a face-up "Lyrical Luscinia" card you control would be destroyed: You can destroy this card instead.

M/ If this card is removed from the field: You can add it to your hand. You can only use this effect of "Lyrical Luscinia – Chalcedony Cardinal" once per turn.

Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale

0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 1/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect

2+ Level 2 monsters

Once per turn: You can attach a number of "Lyrical Luscinia" monsters from your hand, field, GY or that are attached to Xyz Monsters you control as Material, up to this card's original Rank, to this card as Material. (Quick Effect): You can target 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster attached to this card as Material; replace this effect with the effects of that target, until the end of this turn. You can only use this effect of "Lyrical Luscinia – Aspiring Nightingale" once per turn.

Lyrical Luscinia – Allied Nightingale

0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 3/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect

2+ Level 3 monsters

You can only use each of the following effects of "Lyrical Luscinia – Allied Nightingale" once per turn. You can gain 100 LP for each Material attached to this card. (Quick Effect): You can target 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster attached to this card as Material; replace this effect with the effects of that target, until the end of this turn. (Quick Effect): You can detach 2 Materials from this card; target 1 Spell/Trap Card on the field, destroy it.

Lyrical Luscinia – United Nightingale

0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 4/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect

2+ Level 4 monsters

Monsters you control gain 100 ATK/DEF for each Material attached to this card. You can only use each of the following effects of "Lyrical Luscinia – United Nightingale" once per turn. (Quick Effect): You can target 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster attached to this card as Material; replace this effect with the effects of that target, until the end of this turn. (Quick Effect): You can detach 2 Materials from this card; target 1 monster on the field, destroy it.

Lyrical Luscinia – Emancipated Nightingale

0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 5/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect

2+ Level 5 monsters

(Quick Effect): You can detach 2 Materials from this card; target 1 card on the field, that target is unaffected by your opponent's cards or effects, until the end of this turn. Once per turn: You can add 1 "Rank-Up" card from your Deck or GY to your hand. (Quick Effect): You can target up to 2 "Lyrical Luscinia" monsters attached to this card as Material; until the end of this turn, this card gains the effects of that target(s). You can only use this effect of "Lyrical Luscinia – Emancipated Nightingale" once per turn.

Lyrical Luscinia – Freedom Nightingale

0 ATK/ 0 DEF/ WIND/ Rank 6/ Winged Beast/ Xyz/ Effect

2+ Level 6 monsters

If this card is destroyed: You can Special Summon it from your GY; and if you do, attach 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster fin your GY to this card as Material. Once per turn: You can detach 2 Materials from this card; Special Summon 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster from your hand, Deck, GY or Extra Deck. (Quick Effect): You can target up to 2 "Lyrical Luscinia" monsters attached to this card as Material; until the end of this turn, this card gains the effects of that target(s). You can only use this effect of "Lyrical Luscinia – Freedom Nightingale" once per turn.

(Note: I've made a slight modification to Recite Starling's effect. Now her splash damage effect applies 24/7, not just if she was Xyz Summoned).

Rank-Up-Magic Lyrical Force

Normal Spell

Target 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" Xyz Monster you control: Special Summon 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" Xyz Monster from your Extra Deck whose Rank is 1 higher than the targeted monster's Rank, using that target as Material. (This Special Summon is treated as an Xyz Summon. Transfer the targeted monsters Materials to the summoned monster). After this effect resolves: The summoned monster gains 100 ATK/DEF for each Material attached to it. During your Standby Phase: You can banish 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster from your GY; add this card from your GY to your hand.

Rank-Up-Magic Luscinia Force

Normal Spell

Target 1 Xyz Monster you control; Special Summon 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" Xyz Monster from your Extra Deck whose Rank is up to 2 Ranks higher than the targeted monster's Rank, using that target as Material. (This Special Summon is treated as an Xyz Summon. Transfer the targeted monster's Materials to the summoned monster). If this card is in your GY: You can tribute 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster you control; Set this card. You can only use this effect of "Rank-Up-Magic Luscinia Force" once per turn.

Lyrical Luscinia – Bird Chorus

Counter Trap

If your opponent activates a card or effect while you control a face-up "Lyrical Luscinia" monster: You can banish 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster you control or that is in your GY; negate the activation of that card or effect, and if you do, destroy it. After this effect resolves: You can banish 1 "Lyrical Luscinia" monster you control or that is in your GY; Set this card from your GY. You can only use each effect of "Lyrical Luscinia – Bird Chorus" once per turn.

**Shun's cards**

Raid Raptors – Dive

Quick-Play Spell

If you Special Summon a "Raid Raptors" monster: You can Special Summon up to 2 "Raid Raptors" monsters from your hand.

Rank-Over

Normal Trap

Target 1 "Rank-Up-Magic" card in your GY; either add that target to your hand, OR: activate that target.

**Action Cards**

Overlay Penalty

Action Spell

If both players control at least 1 face-up Xyz Monster: Detach 1 Material from each face-up Xyz Monster on the field.

Spiritual Aura

Action Spell

Halve the LP of one player: That player takes no further damage this turn.

Noble Sacrifice

Action Spell

Target 1 monster you control: For the rest of this turn, your opponent cannot target monsters you control for attacks or with card effects, except the monster target by this effect.

* * *

 **So, I'd apologize for the delay, but as Necrograph said, I'm not actually obligated to finish this if it makes me feel unhappy.**

 **...**

 **Kidding. I totally plan on finishing this story, I just need time to plan everything out. Besides, sometimes life needs you to focus on other things.**

 **So this chapter was about Yuto and Ruri's return to Heartland. I don't think I have to explain it, but in case anyone was wondering, the events of this chapter, the last two chapters, and the next chapter are all happening concurrently. While the two of them where dueling together, we all could see that it was primarily about Ruri. My original plan was to have Shun be overprotective of both Xyz Counterparts, but I decided that it would be better for Ruri's character if he focused solely on her.**

 **I think its rather fitting that her monster's evolution is named _Freedom_ Nightingale, while her Fusion monster is named _Independent_ Nightingale. It's symbolic to the fact that Ruri, while she loves her friends and family, including Shun (for all his faults), she doesn't want to rely on them. Of course, both monsters, while powerful in their own right (especially Independent Nightingale, need I bring up The Tyrant Neptune?), they ultimately both need Xyz Material in order for them to grow stronger (directly or indirectly). It makes sense, to me at least, that the Xyz incarnation of Ray is the one who represents the bird aspect of the Kaachoufuugetsu principal; both birds and Xyz monsters grow stronger in numbers (overlay units). Yes, there are a few Monsters that don't need materials attached, and there are plenty of solitary bird species or ones that are a big enough danger in the wild without the need of assistance, but Ruri's monsters are all songbirds; they _willing_ draw on the strength of the flock to grow stronger.**

 ** **(Reminder that the monster evolution concept was my idea and will be one of the few ideas in this story that will not be appearing in SoR, even if Donjusticia begged for it)****

 **All this is my convoluted way of saying that this whole philosophy is going to tie into some character development for Ruri later down the line. Speaking of character development, Shun gets a bit here as well, beginning to wonder if he really has been too protective with his sister. Hence why Ruri planned on doing a double KO move during the duel's final turn. Of course, Yuto, being such a knight in rusted armor, had to step in and save his princess, so that was ruined. Character development doesn't happen in the span of one chapter, episode or game level after all. End result was a heartwarming sibling moment where the Kurosakis begin working to grow. What can I say, I'm a fan of loving sibling relationships.**

 **Of course, between Necrograph's warning and the opening from a few chapters ago, that's not gonna last long. Sorry-not-sorry.**

 **In the meantime, we get to see the return of a few more Zexal legacy characters; namely Rio Kamishiro, Michael/III Archlight, and Anna Kozuki. Zexal totally got the short end of the stick in terms of returning characters, and since we've already got Vector working as an antagonist, why not keep it going!? The rest of the Arclights, as well as Shark, do exist in universe, but to prevent this chapter from becoming too cluttered, I narrowed it down to the three of them since they're some of my favorite Zexal characters.**

 **My reasoning as to why they weren't mentioned beforehand is that they were outside Heartland when Academia attacked, and they couldn't get back in the city because it was blocked off from the rest of the world. Credits to dvdryms for the idea to put a barrier around Heartland to explain why no one could leave. Seriously, the more I thought about it, the more the invasion didn't make sense. It never felt like the whole Xyz Dimension was under attack, just that one city. So why didn't anyone call for help? If Shun and Yuto could leave Heartland, why couldn't anyone else? Did the survivors not have enough equipment or people to reverse engineer Academia's travel tech? If so, why didn't the civilians at least try to leave the city at minimum? Standing by your home as it burns isn't a practical idea, so why didn't anyone think of just leaving!?**

 **UGH! Even if the ending isn't as bad as you'd originally think it is, Arc V still had a lot of plot holes that didn't make any sense. But that's why we have fanfiction so, kind of a toss up.**

 **Moving on, we get a bit more insight on Necrograph's character. He's sort of the friend nobody likes. Unlike everyone else, he views all things as neutral, and that good and evil are solely in the eye of the beholder, hence why he looks at things from the perspective of order and chaos.**

 **Necrograph: Life is so much more fun that way.**

 **We see his ability to irritate other beings in his scenes with Kajandor, one of the Genesis Spirits, the ancestors of each type of Duel Monster Spirit. No connection to Genesis Omega Dragon from the Arc V manga, and no, the Firstborn that has been mentioned beforehand is not G.O.D. More on them as time goes on, but for now, just know that they will be important down the line.** **During the conversations, we see the first signs of a civil war in the Spirit World, ala the Ignis' conflict in Vrains.**

 **As I've stated in prior chapters, part of my goals in writing this story is giving the four dragons more character and depth, since everyone seems to whine and moan over the fact that your precious dragons didn't get the treatment they deserve. (Though I would like to bring up the fact that at one point in this story, Sawatari brought up the face that the dragons and Zarc didn't really have the moral high ground over humanity. Not to mention that Odd-Eyes, in addition to already thinking humans weren't all that bad, called his brothers out on the fact that they were so obsessed with their revenge that they neglected to see how horrible everything was on Zarc. Although that is a bit of a spoiler for the expanded backstory that we'll see around, oh I'd say chapter 20 or so).**

 **Much like the Ignis, the four dragons aren't unanimous in their opinions on humans, a sentiment that is shared with the leaders of the Spirit world. Lets just say that the Dark Dimension isn't the only threat that our heroes are going to have to overcome if they want to keep peace.**

 **Two more little things to go through before I finish off with review shout outs (I'm surprisingly got a lot to say, trying to cover all my bases). First off, I have to ask: Do you guys think that, so far at least, I've been a little too focused on the counterparts in my writing this story? They are meant to all be the main characters, with Yuya and Yuzu sharing the spotlight as co-main protagonists (as it should have rightfully been in actual Arc V), and are some of my favorite YGO characters as a whole, I just love the concept they represent. But I fear that favoritism would affect my writing. Just wanted to ask you guys if you think so?**

 **Second is a reminder that, starting next chapter, Academia gets the spotlight for a while. And we know that means the some major plot developments...**

 **But can't spoil that. Sorry-not-sorry! Now for reviews!**

 **Epsilon Tarantula: Yeah, sorry about that. Just felt like something Yugo would do and I kinda went with it. I was also watching the Emperor's New Groove when I was brainstorming ideas, if that helps explain anything. But yeah, Carly is back for more than just fanservice. And yes, I did purposely make it look like she was a Duel Temple spy. Originally, I was planning on making her a villain, but I had a few more ideas and decided to make her a supporting heroine instead.**

 **thetiger39: 95% certain that Rin never actually dueled Yuri (she didn't have a Duel Disk on when he captured her, and even if she was scared, Rin would have gone down fighting).**

 **Rin: Darn right I would've!**

 **Donjusticia: Necrograph prefers the term 'Chaotic Neutral.' He's more the person, well, personification of the concept of death, who'd rather reign in Hell than serve in Heaven.**

 **Timegazer Magician: Remember that part! It's gonna come up later when he reveals himself to the Lancers!  
**

 **Stargazer Magician: Must you so casually give out spoilers!?**

 **Ashera090: Well, _one_ more chapter to go, _then_ we get to the Duel Priests and their acolytes burning Academia to the ground. But hey, that gives me more room for character development and world building, so, take what you can get.**

 **BasketballIsFun: Well here is your patiently awaited update. But yes, in this story, X gets character development, Y gets character development, they all get character development!**

 **(Yuri: Did you really just quote an old internet meme?**

 **I came up with the name 'Kajandor' after partially changing the name of Kamen Rider OOO Tajador Combo. I'm an awkward mess and I _OWN_ it!)**

 **Guest: Just you wait, there's gonna be more ship tease between every counterpart pair...except Yusuke and Hikari/Mayu, their relationship is strictly sibling-like at most. Besides... no, I'll save that for later.**

 **(Please may all guest reviewers use a screen name other than just 'Guest'. Makes it easier on all of us)**

 **And that's about it. See you next time, and have a happy life.**

 **Necrograph: And afterlife! MWHAHAHAHAHAHA!**


End file.
